


Love Heals All Wounds

by yaoikazowie



Series: Love Heals All Wounds [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Eventual Relationships, Eventual Smut, Happy Ending, Hate to Love, M/M, Mpreg, Rape/Non-con Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-11
Updated: 2017-02-09
Packaged: 2018-08-21 21:01:13
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 13
Words: 27,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8260357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yaoikazowie/pseuds/yaoikazowie
Summary: When a mission goes terribly wrong, Keith is captured and raped by the Galra. Together with support from the team, and Lance-- who has a healing touch-- Keith attempts to recover. But everything changes when he finds out he is pregnant. Can he trust in Lance to help him through this?___Just a warning:Brief depiction of rape at the beginningMale Pregnancy





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi gentle peoples! This is my first Voltron piece, so I hope you all enjoy. I'm not usually into the idea of mpreg, but I had the idea for this story and knew I had to write it anyway. There are brief depictions of rape in the beginning, but after that everything is consensual! Also I tend to write in short chapters, so I hope you all can bear with me on that. I plan on posting as I go along, but have no set schedule.

“VOLTRON, DISBAND!” Shiro commanded over the intercom.

“Shit,” Keith shouted, separating from Voltron and evading incoming fire.

The mission had started out quite uneventfully; in fact, the small planet was almost… eerily quiet. The team had come to liberate the people, enslaved by the Galra. But things had taken a turn for the worse when they were ambushed by the Galra fleet, and now they needed to disband to make themselves less of a target.

               “Hunk, Pidge: You take on the ground forces. Lance and Keith, you provide cover fire,” Shiro barked out orders, and the team frantically rushed into their assigned tasks.

“What about you, Shiro? Not gonna let the rest of the team do all the work, are you?” Keith laughed, blasting away skillfully.

“Very Funny. I’m gonna go evacuate the people with the princess. Looks like things aren’t gonna go as smoothly as we had hoped.”

With that Shiro broke away from the team, heading towards the flaming city.

               “Keith, 3 o-clock!” Lance yelled over the intercom, but it was too late.

THUNK. Keith whipped his head around to find a hook attached to his lion. Attached to the other end of the hook was a Galra fighter, and it was towing him away from the team.

“Crap,” Keith mumbled, shifting his lion away from the ship, attempting to pull free. The hook held fast, the Galra ship much larger than his lion and easily able to tow him away.

“Gonna have to try something else.”

Keith maneuvered his lion in all different directions, the lion thrashing about in an attempt to dislodge the hook. Nothing seemed to be working. Keith glanced back to his team. Shit, he was already so far away.

               In a last desperate attempt to break free, Keith started firing at the Galra ship, blasts landing everywhere. The particle shield held fast, and Keith and his lion were dragged further and further away from the team.

“Uh, guys…” Keith inquired, “a little help?”

The team was busy shooting away, trapped by fire on all sides.

“Shit, Keith, try to hold on! We’ll come back for you!” Hunk yelled, but all of the team were too engrossed in their own battles to come and save him right away.

               Suddenly, all of his controls went dark as a surge of electricity shocked his lion. Everything went black…

“Bring me the seed,” a booming voice disrupted his thoughts.

It certainly wasn’t human. There was something bestial about the voice; it was rough, primal even. Keith’s eyes fluttered open, sharp pains running through his body. _Ow, fuck. Where am I?_

Finally coming to, Keith glanced around at his surroundings.

“A Galra ship?”

He thrashed his body about, finding himself unable to move. _What the…?_ His arms and upper torso were held fast, chained with some sort of handcuffs to the ship floor. Panicked, he battered around some more, pulling wildly at the restraints.

               “It’s no use. Those restraints have held far stronger beings than the likes of you,” a Galra chuckled.

Keith followed the voice, finally spotting the huge purple Galra to his left. He must have stood seven feet tall, his body muscled and eyes of a deep red. Anger bubbled inside of him.

“What the hell do you want with me?” Keith snarled, anger clearly evident.

The big Galra said nothing, turning to his friend and grabbing something. The two exchanged a few unintelligible words before separating. Then the Galra’s friend left the room, locking the doors behind him. Now it was just Keith and what looked like the Captain of the Galra. 

“You have a lot of gall for such a little guy,” the Galra berated.

 “I’ll fix that.”

               The Galra grabbed hold of his legs, tightening his grip as Keith kicked out and struggled. With a single yank his pants and armor were violently ripped free, leaving him exposed from the waist down.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Keith screamed, thrashing wildly.

The feeling of being nude in front of someone, especially the enemy, left him feeling both angry and scared. He couldn’t imagine what the giant purple man was planning, but he knew it couldn’t be good.

Keith watched as the Galra poured something onto his fingers, massaging it around his hand. The liquid was somewhat viscous, sticking to the Galra’s calloused fingers. It was a strange hue of green, he could only guess what it might consist of. Honestly, he didn’t want to know. Then, without warning, the Galra thrusted his large finger inside his exposed hole, pushing deeply inside.

“ARGH,” Keith shrieked, clenching down on the intruding finger in an attempt to push it out. The movement had come as a surprise, Keith’s mind too focused on the strange lubricant. The finger explored Keith’s depths, the rough skin rubbing against his inner walls uncomfortably as the finger moved. The Galra’s digit was long and wide, much larger than any human hand he had ever seen. A second finger was then inserted, crudely stretching his opening. _Fuck. It’s gonna tear!_ Keith curled his toes in agony, his hands clenched into tight fists above his head. His knuckles were an even paler white than his skin, the blood unable to flow into his tightly clenched fingers. Finally the Galra withdrew his finger, eliciting a sigh of relief from Keith.

               “Oh, you’re not done yet,” the Galra scolded, unzipping his pants.

Keith’s eyes grew wide in realization, sheer panic coursing through his body.

“No,” Keith begged, his heart racing wildly in fear. “No. No. No…” his cries turned desperate.

A wicked smile spread across the Galra’s features, a smile so horrid Keith’s heart just about stopped. The Galra teased him, allowing him to anticipate what was to happen shortly as he stroked his long phallus to hardness. _That thing must be a foot long! It’s so big, so wide… There’s no way—_ He kicked wildly, using every last bit of his strength to prevent the Galra’s pelvis from getting any closer.

“It’s sexy when you fight the inevitable; the look of sheer terror on your face could make any man go crazy. You’re such a tease,” the Galra laughed, silencing Keith’s kicking legs with his tight grip, “looks like you really want it.”

“No,” Keith cried now, his face red with tears, “Please, No.”

               The Galra looked down at his writhing body, covered in a thick sweat. The Captain eyed Keith’s tight abdomen, muscular like a man, but with narrow hips, like a woman. The exposed flesh was starkly white, his pure essence practically leaking from his every orifice. The Galra licked his lips, enraptured in his lust. The monster inched closer and closer, finally nestling himself between Keith’s legs, his phallus hovering beside his moist entrance. Keith fought as much as he could, wiggling around violently. He must have exhausted most of his energy, as his thrashing grew weaker and weaker. In his state, he couldn’t continue to fight much longer. The Galra rubbed the tip of his cock around Keith’s hole, teasing him once more.

“No,” Keith’s voice shook, “No…” He clenched his eyes shut, accepting that there wasn’t much else he could do.

The Galra pressed inside slowly, his cock disappearing inch by inch inside Keith.

“AHH!!!” Keith wailed, tears flowing freely, his hands clenched into tight fists.

Keith’s breath became nothing more than shallow whispers, his head getting light as if he was going to pass out. The Galra continued, pushing and pushing until he was all the way inside. Blood trickled down Keith’s thighs, though in the moment he couldn’t rationalize that it was his own. The Galra paused there for a minute, probably to allow him to get used to it, but with a phallus that large that was just not going to happen.

               Keith was overcome with pain, the large cock stretching his hole open and rubbing at his insides. The Galra then started moving, pulling out and then slamming back in aggressively. Keith was screaming. With every thrust he could feel his consciousness fading. The huge cock scraped against his walls, causing him to quiver violently.

“No… No…”

The monster thrusted his hips more violently, gripping Keith’s waist tightly to more deeply impale himself.

“AH... Take it... UH… Out… HUH … hurts…” Keith managed to squeak out between thrusts, though his voice was beginning to fail him.

His words seemed to excite the Galra more, who continued to plunge into him sadistically. He could feel the cock deep inside him, throbbing. Every once and a while it would scrape across his prostate, causing him to scream in agony. Keith’s head grew foggy, though he vaguely heard himself screaming. Finally Keith’s voice faded, and he passed out entirely.

When he awoke his was sitting upright, still chained in place, though he had his pants and armor back on. _Maybe it was just a dream?_ Keith shifted a bit, a sharp pain emanating from his hips. _Not a dream._ His vision was still hazy, and he could barely make out the voices he was hearing.

“The lions are outside the door, Captain. What should we do with the prisoner?”

“Release him.”

“B-But Captain! That’s crazy! Why would you— “whoever was talking was interrupted with a menacing glare from the captain.

“Release him.”

Keith vaguely felt his hands and torso being unlocked, before fainting once again.

“How long has it been? Shouldn’t he be awake by now?”

Keith could hear Lance’s muffled voice. _What happened?_ He was afraid to open his eyes, but if Lance was there surely wherever he was is safe? Keith slowly opened his eyes, finding the Princess, Lance, and Shiro looking at him through the glass of the healing pod. The door opened, a rush of air released as the seal was broken.

Keith stumbled, almost falling out of the pod, but Shiro caught him, lending his shoulder to help him stand upright.

“Keith? Are you okay? What happened?” Shiro pressed.

Not quite one hundred percent awake yet, Keith processed what had happened.

“The… the lion… THE LION!”

Shiro chuckled, shaking the both of them a bit.

“The lion’s fine. We’re just glad you’re safe.”

Keith recalled the events, shuddering as he pictured that Galra’s callous face. Thanks to the healing pod, most of his pain was gone. _But it can never erase those vivid memories…_

“Anyway, Keith, why don’t you go and eat something. We can talk more then.”

Leaning onto Shiro and Lance’s shoulders, he was helped to the dining room and served some goo. After a few awkward moments of quiet, Lance broke the silence.

“So, what happened?”

Keith froze up. _I can’t tell them what happened… It’ll be the end of me._

“What, Galra got your tongue?” Lance laughed mockingly.

“Lance, don’t be insensitive. Let him process,” Shiro reprimanded.

Keith cleared his throat, looking up at Shiro.

“They just dragged my lion away, and then I must have passed out. Cause the next thing I knew I was in that recovery pod,” Keith lied.

Shiro nodded his head, as if he understood.

“Well I guess this is a good lesson learned. We will have to do a bit more reconnaissance before entering another planet. We can’t afford another ambush.”

The three sat in silence for a while, Keith eating reluctantly. Truthfully his appetite was very poor, though he knew he had been out for at least a few days, so he probably needed it. Finally Keith stood.

“Uh… I think I’m going to go get some rest. I’m still pretty tired.”

Shiro motioned for him to leave, Lance complaining that Keith gets to laze around but he still had to train. Typical Lance.

He headed back to his room, curling up onto his bed. The events kept running through his head; he couldn’t forget them. For some reason he began to cry, reaching up to his face and surprised to find the droplets staining his cheeks. He cried for a long time, finally so exhausted that he willingly succumbed to a deep sleep.

_He was surrounded by Galra. They each looked down on his naked body, stroking themselves quickly. He was bound—hands and feet immobilized, his hole dripping a mixture of blood and semen from previous uses._

_“Me next!” One said._

_“No, me!”_

_He was ravaged over and over, again and again. Reliving the pains, reliving the tortures, it never ended._

_Then He came in. It was_ him _, the Captain. The Galra who’s face he remembered so vividly.  He approached Keith’s wrecked body, covered in semen, blood and sweat._

_“It’s my turn,” the beast’s voice made his blood curdle._

_The Captain grabbed hold of his hair, lifting his head to meet his own._

_“Ready for round two?”_

“AHHH!” Keith screamed, bolting upright in his bed. The sheets were drenched with sweat, clinging uncomfortably to his body.  

He glanced around nervously, heart still racing. He was still in his room, safe. Keith sighed, rubbing his eyes in frustration. Suddenly there was a knock on the door, Lance rushing in haphazardly.

“Are you okay? You screamed. Pretty loudly, might I add.”

Keith blushed a bit, embarrassed that he had been heard. He pulled the blankets up, trying to cover himself as much as possible. _Don’t want him seeing all the sweat… He’ll never let me live it down._

“Uh, yeah, I’m fine. Must have just been a bad dream.”

Lance stared at him inquisitively for a moment, as if doubting him in his mind.

 “Well Okay then. Let me know if you need anything.”

He started for the door, peeping his head in to add, “Even if it’s just to talk.”

_That was weird. Was Lance just… nice to me?_ He shrugged off the thought, attributing it to his sleepiness, settling back into bed and falling asleep once more.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When a mission goes terribly wrong, Keith is captured and raped by the Galra. Together with support from the team, and Lance-- who has a healing touch-- Keith attempts to recover. But everything changes when he finds out he is pregnant. Can he trust in Lance to help him through this?  
> ___  
> Just a warning:  
> Brief depiction of rape at the beginning  
> Male Pregnancy

A couple of weeks had passed since everything had happened, and things had settled back into the normal routine once again. The team had gone on a couple of missions, and nothing much had happened. Everyone seemed to be in high spirits, and even Coran had been worrying less lately.

The team started to hang up their armor, returning yet again from another successful mission. Keith felt a bit strange, a pain radiating from his stomach, pulsing madly all throughout the mission. He had wrote it off to nerves, or perhaps a lack of sleep, but now as he stood here the pains grew worse. He hunched forward a little, trying to be subtle as to not worry the other team members.

“I’m gonna go work on some upgrades for the lions with Hunk,” Pidge announced, the two taking their leave.

“I’m heading up to the training deck,” Lance started, “Keith, you coming with me?”

_I can’t possibly train in this condition. Maybe I need to rest a little more. Surely with some sleep this pain will subside._

“Uh, I’ll pass. I’m a little tired,” Keith offered.

Shiro glanced a questioning look over at him, Lance raising his eyebrow suspiciously.

“Uh… Okay,” Lance said, jogging out of the room.

Keith started to head for his room, but was startled by a hand on his shoulder.

“Shiro?”

“Hey, Keith, Seriously. If there’s something bothering you, let me know. It might be best not to push yourself too hard just yet,” Shiro instructed.

“Uh, yeah. Really, I’m just a bit tired. Haven’t been sleeping well lately.”

Shiro nodded in understanding, allowing Keith to return to his room.

The team gathered for dinner at their normal hour, but Keith was still in his room. It had been a couple of hours since they had returned from their mission, and Lance was growing quite worried. (Not that he would ever admit it)

“I’m concerned about Keith,” Lance stated, “He hasn’t been himself lately. He’s training less, he’s been having trouble focusing, and he hardly eats anymore. I mean he hardly did before, but now it’s even worse.”

Princess Allura nodded her head in agreement.

“I do so agree. I have felt for a while now that Keith has been distant ever since that incident.”

Pidge spoke up.

“Sometimes, I hear him scream in the middle of the night. I think there’s something more to that incident than he is telling us.”

“But why would he want to hide anything from us?” Shiro inquired, questioning as to why Keith would feel the need to hide anything from the team.

Their conversation was cut short as Keith plodded into the room, yawning tiredly before taking his seat. Everyone eyed him carefully, aware that something wasn’t right.

“How about some food?” Shiro offered, rising from his seat.

“Uh, no thanks. My stomach has been hurting me lately. Just haven’t had an appetite lately.”

Princess Allura grew more concerned, “Keith, sicknesses from Earth do not exist in space. Perhaps if you describe your symptoms I could attempt to diagnose you with something native of space? After all, the ship carries adequate medicine for most space-borne illnesses.”

Keith smiled at Allura, nodding.

“Yeah sure, I guess. Lately I’ve been having this pain in my stomach—“

Allura interrupted, “Could you be more specific as to where the pain is felt?”

Keith motioned to his abdomen, explaining that the pain was lower than his stomach.

“So lack of appetite, trouble sleeping, and stomach pain are your symptoms?” Allura sent a concerned glance over to Coran, who returned the same look of worry.

“Yeah, I guess so.”

_How’d they know about the trouble sleeping?_

Allura stood suddenly, motioning for Coran.

“Coran, could you get a test from the infirmary for me?”

Coran nodded, disappearing for a moment before returning with some sort of blue stick.

“Seriously, it’s no big deal. You shouldn’t worry too much,” Keith said, noting the worry in Allura’s eyes.

“Surely, Keith, you must realize that space-borne illnesses can be very dangerous. Even more so to someone who has never been exposed to them before. You are a valuable member of Voltron, and your health is imperative. I beseech you to at the very least take this test, so that we may go about curing you of your symptoms.”

Keith sighed dejectedly, agreeing to take the test.

“Coran, take Keith to take the test. I will meet you shortly.”

Keith raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Coran and him made their way to the infirmary, the rest of the team cleaning up their dishes and headed for their respective rooms.

Coran spoke on the way, “So you have to urinate on this end here—“

“Wait, what?” Keith questioned, “What sort of test is this?”

Coran flinched a bit, which didn’t go unnoticed.

“It is a standard means of testing for space illnesses. Anyway, so you urinate on this end here, and then wait for a few minutes. Then I can determine the results of the test.”

Keith shrugged, taking the stick from Coran, “Well, whatever.”

Keith was gone for a few minutes, before returning with the stick. Coran seemed on edge, pacing back and forth and staring intently at the test.

Suddenly Coran gasped.

“What? What is it?”

Coran regained his composure, stroking his mustache attentively.

“I am afraid I am unsure of what this result means, and I must consult the Princess. I will return momentarily.”

Coran rushed out of the room, finding Princess Allura waiting with the same look of impatience.

“Well, Coran, Is it true?”

Coran glanced at Allura, handing her the test. She peeked at the Altean plus sign, eyes growing wide.

“It can’t be.”

Coran and the Princess sure were taking a long time.

“Screw it. I’m gonna go find them.”

Keith could tell by the look on Coran’s face that the results were not good. But in all reality, it was probably just some kind of space cold. The two were obviously just exaggerating the issue. Regardless, Keith felt himself worrying, even if just a little bit.

“I’m probably just over reacting,” Keith mumbled to himself.

Finally he found the two, deep in conversation. Allura wrinkled her brow, sighing dejectedly.

“Should we tell him?” Allura whispered, unaware of Keith’s proximity.

The Princess jumped when she saw Keith, eyeing Coran nervously. Keith could tell that both were on edge—maybe this illness was really contagious or something?

“So what is it?” Keith asked, butting into the conversation.

Coran cleared his throat, looking to Allura for direction. Finding none, Coran spoke up.

“I’m afraid we are currently unaware of what this result means. We will have to do some research to be definitive. I’m sure we can let you know in a couple of days or so.”

               Keith wasn’t about to ask any more questions, and decided to give up and walk away. Surely the two would come around sooner or later. But he couldn’t fight the lingering feeling that something was terribly, terribly wrong.

               The following days passed somewhat normally. The pain in his stomach hadn’t bothered him for a few days, and he was finally able to begin training once again. It was quite a relief actually; it gave him something else to focus on.

The familiar tang of metal clashing against metal rung against his ears, soothing him a little. Lance and he had been training all morning, working up to level three drones in the training hall. The competitive rivalry had done the both good, and spirits were high.

“Keith!” Princess Allura called out, but he was too engrossed in his training that he didn’t seem to notice.

“KEITH!” She raised her voice a second time, this time capturing the duo’s attention immediately.

“Yes Princess?” Keith sheathed his weapon, walking towards the window where Allura stood watching. 

She pivoted from foot to foot, twiddling her thumbs anxiously. Coran stood by her side, equally on edge.

“I’d like to discuss those test results,” she said, buzzing in over the intercom.

Keith nodded, yelling back to her.

“Just discuss them right here, I’m going to keep training.”

Keith turned back to Lance and the drone, preparing to start up again.

               “I would highly advise against that,” Allura whispered, “The results are quite sensitive. Perhaps it would be best to come discuss them privately.”

Keith shrugged, “I don’t mind. Just tell me here.”

Allura sighed heavily, looking to Coran. Coran just shrugged his shoulders, unsure of what to do.

“Well the results of the test are definitive—“

“Great,” Keith interrupted, battling away absent-mindedly.

“And I don’t know how to say this but…” her voice trailed off, but Keith wasn’t paying much attention.

“Keith, you’re pregnant.”

Both Lance and Keith froze, looking to each other confusedly. After a moment Keith laughed, breaking the awkward moment of silence that had fallen over the room.

“Oh, ha ha. Very funny. But really, what is it? You have my full attention now.”

Allura frowned.

“Keith,” Allura said sternly, “I’m serious.”

He could tell from the look on her face that she genuinely believed what she was saying. Her features showed no hint of joking, and Coran’s face looked much the same.

“I don’t mean to insult your intelligence, Princess, but Earth males are unable to get pregnant. I’m not sure how it works for Alteans, but men simply don’t have the means of carrying a child,” Keith explained, “So I’m sure that’s not it. What else could be the problem?”

Lance had stood there silently (for once), enjoying the conversation the three of them were having. He chuckled a bit, Keith and he exchanging amused glances.

“Unfortunately, Keith, Alteans have a technology known as a womb seed. Inserted correctly, it allows for a male to conceive via his rectum.”

Keith furrowed his eyebrows, grossed out.

“Uh… that’s cool, I guess… But even so, it’s not like I’ve _done_ anything like that.”

Allura seemed prepared for this.

“But Keith, you told us that when you were captured you passed out the whole time,” Keith shifted nervously, avoiding eye contact.

“Right,” he affirmed, finally piecing two and two together.

“Right. Therefore it is possible that in your unconscious state, something may have happened. In fact, it would put it in about the right time frame.”

Lance snorted, obviously skeptic about her explanation.

               “Nothing happened,” Keith Assured, though he was beginning to doubt his own words. He did vaguely remember the Captain asking for a seed, but maybe it was just his overactive imagination. Besides, why would a Galra want to get him pregnant in the first place? It made no sense, really.

“Perhaps,” Allura said, “But it is more than likely. The test you took,” she paused, “was a pregnancy test. Keith, it was positive. It would explain all of your symptoms.”

His face grew red, heat rising to his face. He was angry now. At the Galra for sure, but also towards every person in the room. He just needed to be alone.

“I’m not pregnant!” Keith yelled angrily, slamming his weapon to the floor.

In a rage he stomped out of the room, retreating to the safety of his bedroom.

               Lance stood in shock, unsure of how to respond to what he just witnessed.

“Lance,” the princess started, “Don’t go spreading this around. Let him process for a while. When he’s ready, he can tell the others. In the meantime, make sure he doesn’t over exert himself. He will need strict bed rest for the next few months.”

Lance nodded, dumbfounded.

“I’m going to go try to talk to him,” Coran said, exiting the room.

“Pregnant? By my ass?” Keith mumbled to himself, angrily throwing himself to his bed.

The way the princess explained it, it seemed quite feasible. But it made no sense. And it brought up other questions, too. As if on que, Coran knocked politely, then impolitely barged into his room. Keith pulled his pillow to his chest, turning away from him angrily.  The two sat in silence for a little while, perhaps contemplating what was happening.

“Keith,” Coran started, “I know this must be hard for you to understand. But I would like to answer any of your questions, as well as explain the implications this may have on the next few months of your life.”

Keith stayed silent, though he listened intently to what Coran was saying. Sensing this, Coran continued.

“Male pregnancy differs greatly from female pregnancy. It is a great deal more painful, and as you progress, the pain gets worse. It is likely you will be stuck on bed rest for most of the time, and it is important to get adequate rest and food. Especially if you are eating for two—“

Keith winced, ignoring that last part.

“As time goes on you will notice changes in your body. It is quite normal, so don’t be alarmed. Thankfully for us all, I do have experience delivering babies, so should anything go wrong—“

“Delivering!?” Keith just about yelled, “Who said I would deliver this thing? Can’t you just, like, I dunno… take it out?”

               “Indeed if we could, I would. Unfortunately there is no way to abort a fetus safely. As you know, you have no womb, and no placenta. Therefore the womb seed anchors onto your internal organs, sending branches to the stomach, bladder, and so on so the baby can survive. Removing the womb would jeopardize all of those internal organs. This process is very painful, as the tubes will in effect burrow through the organ walls, and grow larger as the baby matures. For this reason male pregnancy isn’t very common in most cultures, though it does happen periodically.”

Keith sunk his face into the pillow, gripping it angrily. Finally he turned a fearful eye towards Coran.

“So there’s nothing we can do?”

Coran shook his head sadly, “I’m afraid not.”

Keith cursed in frustration, slamming his fist against the wall with a loud thud.

“What about the baby?” he whispered, “What if I don’t want to keep it?”

Coran understood.

“I’ll work on it,” Coran said as he stood.

With one final glance of pity Coran left the room, leaving Keith to himself for a while.

That night the stomach pains returned, thought this time worse than before. Keith couldn’t help but imagine those tubes ripping into his organs, attaching like some sort of parasite. It made him sick to his stomach, and probably made him more aware of the pain.

After a long while he finally passed out, relieved from the pain at least temporarily.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When a mission goes terribly wrong, Keith is captured and raped by the Galra. Together with support from the team, and Lance-- who has a healing touch-- Keith attempts to recover. But everything changes when he finds out he is pregnant. Can he trust in Lance to help him through this?  
> ___  
> Just a warning:  
> Brief depiction of rape at the beginning  
> Male Pregnancy

Lance approached Princess Allura worriedly, something obviously on his mind. He had listened to Keith moan in pain all night, and couldn’t help but worry for him. Sure, they had hated each other in the beginning. But given the situation, he figured the guy deserved his sympathy at the least.

“Lance? What’s the matter?”

He explained what he had heard the previous night, expressing his concern for Keith’s welfare.

“Isn’t there anything I,” he blushed, correcting himself, “I mean _we_ can do for him?”

Allura contorted her features, making a face expressing deep thought. She pressed a finger to her lips absently, trying to remember what sorts of things were done 10,000 years ago. Suddenly her features softened; clearly she had an idea.

“In the Altean times, male pregnancy only happened between bonded soulmates, both male. The significant other often performed special massages to relieve pain, helped the other to eat and bathe, and just generally looked out for the other’s condition. It is said that the partner’s love for the other transcended touch, soothing the body and relieving pain.”

Lance lowered his eyebrows, looking at Allura unamused.

“Well there is a _little_ problem, here, then. Keith doesn’t have anyone like that. And it’s not like any of us know how to perform those massages or whatever.”

“Perhaps I could teach you,” Allura said with a smile, “I think it would be a bit weird for me to do it.”

Lance turned a deep red.

“And it wouldn’t be weird for me to do it?!?”

Allura laughed.

“I think it would be better coming from you. Think of it as a bonding experience! But you must be careful. These massages utilize specific pressure points, and, done incorrectly, can cause temporary paralysis and pain.”

_Gee, sounds safe._ Though he wasn’t too fond of the idea, he did feel bad for Keith. If there was something he could do, he’d do it.

“…Okay,” he said reluctantly.

“It’ll take a couple of weeks to get the hang of it, but it is a good practice to know. The ones I’ll show you are more directed towards pregnancy, but there are a variety of others as well. However, in order for some of the stronger pressure points to work, the two partners must trust completely in each other. Some of the pressure points are in sensitive places, but it is these that work the most powerfully. I’ll show you the basics first, and you can work your way towards the more advanced ones later.”

_Sensitive… places? Oh fuck no, I’m not getting_ that _intimate with Keith… But it may be beneficial to learn the basics, at least._

“Well then, let’s get started!”

Allura seemed very excited to teach him these things. Perhaps it reminded her of the past. Either way, he wasn’t sure he liked what he’d just gotten himself into.

               “You can practice on this dummy, here,” she said nonchalantly.

_Let the lessons begin._

 

               It was hard listening to Keith at night. Even through the walls, Lance could hear Keith groan in pain throughout the night. With every passing day it grew more frequent, and some of the others were beginning to notice.

“Keith, why are you so loud at night? I can never focus on my studies,” Pidge asked, pushing her glasses back into place.

The entire team sat around the breakfast table, Keith finally joining them more consistently. In fact, his hunger had grown immensely, and though he was eating twice as much as usual, he never seemed to put on any weight.

Keith fumbled with his silverware, coughing to fill the silence. It was obvious he didn’t want to talk about it, and no one was bold enough to press.

               Lance changed the subject.

“It’s been rather quiet lately, hasn’t it? Not much news about the Galra lately.”

Thankful for the change in subject, Keith let out a little sigh, eyeing Lance thankfully. Luckily for him the conversation bait worked, and the issue was dropped altogether. But Lance was unsure how much longer they could withhold Keith’s pregnancy. Sooner or later, it was going to become obvious.

               For the time being, however, Lance had committed himself to learning the Altean pressure point techniques, practicing in all of his free time. He was surprised no one had really noticed; though he was notorious for taking naps and disappearing for a few hours. Allura was impressed with his progress, telling him that the sooner he began to help Keith the better. Perhaps it would ease Keith’s late night outbursts, and help everyone sleep more soundly, Keith especially.

There was only one problem, and that was how to go about initiating such a thing. Knowing Keith, he would most likely find that kind of physical contact disgusting, and suspicious. Though they were team mates, the two were known to bicker and fight constantly. Nothing serious, but it sure would be out of character for the two to just start sleeping in the same room all of a sudden. He didn’t want the team to get the wrong idea. He was doing this out of obligation to Voltron, nothing more, and he certainly wasn’t looking forward to it. Lance decided it would be best to practice a bit more, and wait a while longer.

That night, Lance hit the sheets early. Honestly, he had been practicing so much (instead of taking naps) and the fatigue was starting to catch up to him. Plus with Keith’s outbursts at night, it had become harder and harder for him to sleep. The more he listened to Keith’s pain, the guiltier he felt. He knew he could do something about it, but he was too afraid to do anything. So he decided to just keep practicing, but he knew before long there would be nothing left to practice; and meanwhile Keith’s pain only grew worse and worse.

“Agh,” Lance could hear Keith’s voice through the wall separating their bedrooms.

“He must have had the same though as me, heading to bed early. Can’t imagine he’s been getting much sleep, though,” Lance said to himself.

It was clear that Keith was suffering. He spent more and more time in his room, presumably to catch up on sleep. He still attempted to train every day, though his sessions had become shorter and shorter.

“Ung,” Lance heard Keith cry out once more.

Lance glanced at the clock. _It’s only 9 PM._ As he lay there, Lance listened to Keith. His voice was agonizing to listen to; he sounded so weak and frail, so unlike his usual self. His cries came out is short gasps of air, a short duration between each of them.

“Shit.”

He knew it was time to do something. Reluctantly Lance stood, slipping on some pants to appear at least somewhat decent. He had a feeling heading over in only his boxers wouldn’t end well. But for some reason, Lance’s heart was beating wildly.

_What is with me? Why am I so nervous?_ Thoughts were running through his mind at lightning speed.

_What if he rejects me? What if he doesn’t? What if I hurt him? What if someone sees us?_ Lance’s heart sped even faster as he walked out into the hallway, pausing at Keith’s door in hesitation. Pushing his disruptive thoughts away, he brought his shaking hand to the door. His hand froze, his fingers quivering slightly, before knocking quietly once. _Nothing happened._ With a bit more confidence he knocked again, this time with more force. The sound reverberated off of the metal walls, making a distinct metal clang that ought to have woken the entire castle. There was no doubt Keith heard him now.  

Lance waited for several moments, but Keith had gone dead silent. The continual moans had ceased, though after a long couple of seconds he heard a muffled groan through the door. He wasn’t answering. _Should I just… go in?_ Sure, it’d be an invasion of privacy; but it was for a good cause… right? _Fuck it._

“Keith, its Lance. I’m coming in, so don’t be naked.”

Gathering his courage, he walked through the sliding doors.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When a mission goes terribly wrong, Keith is captured and raped by the Galra. Together with support from the team, and Lance-- who has a healing touch-- Keith attempts to recover. But everything changes when he finds out he is pregnant. Can he trust in Lance to help him through this?  
> ___  
> Just a warning:  
> Brief depiction of rape at the beginning  
> Male Pregnancy

The sight of the crumpled body on the bed was sickening. Keith lay in his bed, the sheets drawn around him loosely and his head propped up by a crumpled pillow. Keith was facing the wall adjacent to the bed, his back turned towards lance. His hair was damp with sweat, his skin a sickly white. Lance watched his chest rise and fall heavily, as if he was struggling to breathe. Finally Keith turned his head, his tired eyes meeting Lance’s.

               “Lance?”

His voice was meek, so unlike his usual self. A pain formed in Lance’s chest as he looked at the frail figure before him. _How could I have waited so long?_ Lance’s eyes watered, feeling guilty that he had not done anything sooner. What’s done is done, but he was surely going to make up for it now. Lance approached Keith’s bed tentatively, finally sitting on the corner of the mattress.

He couldn’t make eye contact. Seeing the pain in Keith’s face nearly made his heart stop, tears threatening to flow.

“Hey, Keith.”

He didn’t know where to even begin. _Hey Keith let me perform this Altean ritual to soothe your pain!_ Yeah, that’d surely work. Keith’s head grew weary, holding it at such an angle as to view Lance, so he finally turned and rested his head on the pillow once more. His respirations were shallow, his chest shuddering with each breath.

Lance decided not to say anything else, and instead just do it. Maybe the relief will speak for itself, and Keith won’t hate him. _Hopefully._ Sighing, Lance scooted Keith over to the far side of the bed, crawling in next to him and pushing down the sheets to reveal Keith’s bare torso. _So he sleeps in his boxers…_ With only his lower abdomen covered, Keith’s physique was shown off nicely. His back was well muscled, though quite bony, and small for a guy. His skin was a pale white, and it was covered in small rivulets of sweat. _He’s actually kind of… sexy._

_WOAH WOAH WOAH WHAT?_ Keith shook his head, clearing his head from the weird thoughts. _Keith? Sexy?_ How stupid.

“Dude, what the hell?” Keith tried to wiggle away, but the effort proved to be too much.

“Get away from me! What do you think you’re doing!?”

Lance ignored him, placing his hands on the small of Keith’s back. Keith jumped, reaching behind him to grab Lance’s hand. Keith’s hand gripped Lance’s arm tightly, as if daring him to try anything more. But in his weakened state there was not much he could do about it. In all reality, Lance could probably get away with doing anything he wanted. Memories of the night he was raped raced through his head, and his heartbeat quickened as he recalled the Galra’s rough hands. _Lance isn’t going to… try anything, right?_ Keith’s thoughts must be irrational, Lance would never do something like that. But with the memories resurfacing, he just couldn’t think straight. He was scared.

“Stop it, Lance!”

Lance just continued, moving his other hand to Keith’s hip, just as Allura had showed him. Keith’s entire body stiffened, recoiling against Lance’s cool hands.

“Get off of me you homo!” Keith yelled, an intense fear setting in.

Lance massaged his fingers in a circular motion, with each motion pushing deeper and deeper into the muscle. All at once Keith fell still, his body relaxing completely.

“Thank God,” Lance thought to himself.

Keith kept his tight grip on Lance’s wrist, his knuckles turning white. But he had stopped resisting, allowing Lance to massage him.

“What,” Keith started, “Did you do?”

He breathed the words out breathlessly, almost unable to speak.

               “Shhh. I’ll make the pain go away.”

Keith relaxed into Lance’s touch, arching his back a bit. Keith must have felt good, as he had gone silent, his breathing becoming more and more regular. After a while of this Lance leaned over, catching a glimpse of Keith’s face. He was dead asleep, with a look of complete peace on his face. The wrinkle in his brow had relaxed, his lips no longer pursed. He looked simply angelic, lying there in a state of near bliss. It had probably been a while since Keith was able to sleep so soundly. Lance brushed Keith’s black hair behind his ear, easing himself off of the bed as quietly as possible, so as to not wake him.

               Lance returned to his room, spent. As he thought, Keith wasn’t too happy being touched. The evidence showed clearly on his wrist, still a crimson red from where Keith had held him. But on the other hand, he really seemed to relax after a few minutes. His painful moans slowly turned into hums of pleasure, and in all honesty it was very cute. In the end Keith relaxed into his fingers, almost urging Lance to continue his massaging motion. All in all, things went over better than he had planned. But he hadn’t planned on enjoying it to the extent that he did. _Maybe “enjoyment” isn’t the right word._

 He would never forget the warmth of Keith’s body pressed up against his own, or the feel of Keith’s smooth skin as his fingers grazed over his boney hip. Lance shuddered, shaking his head to clear his thoughts. He most certainly was not going to admit that he enjoyed it. And he certainly wasn’t looking forward to doing it again. Whatever he did must have worked, because for the first night in what seemed like ages, the entire castle slept in silence.

Keith was at the breakfast table. The team hadn’t shared breakfast together with Keith for weeks now, so when he showed up this morning everyone was surprised. In a good way, of course. Except maybe for Lance. A slow heat rose to his face, recalling what he had done the night before. He hadn’t done anything wrong, per se, but there must be something wrong with him since he enjoyed it. Lance was bothered. Why did he find such satisfaction in it? He’d like to think it was just the good feeling he gets from helping a friend, but he knew that wasn’t it. Whatever the feeling, he couldn’t quite seem to put his finger on it.

               The team seemed to notice Lance’s odd behavior, each of them eyeing his suspiciously. Lance tried to calm himself down, attempting to seem at least somewhat nonchalant about everything. After all, none of the team members knew about Keith’s pregnancy. At least not yet.

“Nice to see you so early in the morning, Keith,” Shiro joked, “It sure has been a while.”

Keith smiled, smoothing his hair with his hand.

“Yeah well, I seem to have slept very well last night. It’s been a long time since I’ve been able to relax like that.”

Keith eyed Lance awkwardly as he said this, blushing uncomfortably before settling his gaze on the plate in front of him. _Shots fired._

Surely Keith wasn’t mad about last night, right? I mean all Lance had done was help him to relax. He did him a favor. So why was everything so damn awkward?

“Um, I’m suddenly full,” Lance said as he pushed in his chair. “I’m gonna go train for a little while. Don’t catch up.”

Keith’s gaze bored a hole through his back as he left the room. Could he have been any more obvious? Now the entire castle was suspicious. It didn’t matter now. He just needed to get away from that table.

               It had been about an hour since Lance had left the table. True to their word, no one had bothered to come looking for him. They probably figured he just needed some time to himself for a while. Not that Lance wanted anyone to come after him. Probably.

He was completely engrossed in his training, allowing all of his pent up confusions and frustrations to leave him as he battled away. It felt good to forget the world for a little while. And after a hot shower and a long day of training, he felt renewed. That is, of course, until he had nothing left to do and his mind was once again left to wander.

               No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t stop his thoughts from returning to the night before. If only one session caused him to feel like this, how in the world was he supposed to do it again? But what if Keith needed him? Surely he couldn’t let his own teammate suffer. Especially when he knew he had the means to make everything better.

“Ugh!” Lance groaned in frustration, throwing himself to the bed and covering his face with the pillow.

All he could do is hope that Keith won’t need him again any time soon. And if he does, he only hoped that he would be able to follow through.

“Maybe it will get easier with time,” he mumbled to himself.

Lance chuckled at the thought. _Yeah, like that was going to happen._ Luckily for him the day had been long, and his weary muscles urged him to close his eyes. And in a blink of an eye, he was out.

               Lance had been avoiding Keith for at least a week now. The two could never seem to cohabit the same room, except for meal times, but even then the silence between them was apparent. If one entered the room, the other left, and they seldom made eye contact for more than a few seconds. Something was going on between them, and the team was determined to get to the bottom of it.

               Shiro seemed the most concerned. After all, if everybody didn’t trust in each other completely, there was no way to form Voltron. And the safety of the universe came before their petty squabbles; he was going to make that very clear. Shiro, Pidge, Hunk, and Allura sat around the table to make a game plan.

“Just lock them in a room together for a few hours. They’ll work it out,” Pidge laughed sarcastically.

Shiro gave her a glare, which shut her up immediately.

He reprimanded her, “I hardly think that locking them in the same room would lead to anything other than a fist fight. And that’s _exactly_ what we’re trying to avoid.”

Allura joined in now, clearing her throat to indicate that she wished to speak. The team members all turned, giving her their full attention.

“I suppose it would be best to determine the cause of all this,” Allura furrowed her brows in thought.

“Maybe we should just get their sides of the story and go from there,” Hunk suggested.

Everyone agreed on this course of action. Hunk was to go talk to Lance, while Shiro was going to talk to Keith. Then they would meet again and plan from there. Then Hunk and Shiro both rose, each heading to their respective locations.

               “Yo Lance!” Hunk called out, trying to catch his attention.

Lance sheathed his bayard, jogging over to Hunk who stood in the doorway of the training hall.

“What’s up?”

Lance seemed to be in good spirits, his usual sarcasm bleeding through his every word.

“Uh… I just gotta ask bro,” this caught his attention, “What’s up with you and Keith lately?”

Lance’s easy-going demeanor faded, and he quickly grew defensive.

“What the heck are you talking about? We are the same as always.”

Lance shifted his weight uncomfortably, obviously hiding something. Hunk had known him long enough to know that something was most definitely up.

               “Dude, I’m not an idiot. You two can’t even stay in the same room. Not to mention the fact that you haven’t even spoken to each other in a _week.”_

He had a point there, Lance knew.

“Hunk, we’re _rivals._ We’ve never gotten along all that great. There’s nothing up. Trust me.”

Hunk nodded, accepting that he wasn’t going to get anything from him. Maybe Shiro would have better luck with Keith.

“Alright man. But if anything comes up and you need to talk, you know where to find me,” Hunk said as he left the room.

               The team gathered around the table once more to report their findings. Hunk told them of his lack of luck with Lance, finding that Shiro had had the same experience. Clearly whatever had happened, neither of them were going to talk about it.

“Darn it. Okay team, plan B. We’re going to have an intervention.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When a mission goes terribly wrong, Keith is captured and raped by the Galra. Together with support from the team, and Lance-- who has a healing touch-- Keith attempts to recover. But everything changes when he finds out he is pregnant. Can he trust in Lance to help him through this?  
> ___  
> Just a warning:  
> Brief depiction of rape at the beginning  
> Male Pregnancy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter, mid-terms this week!

“Attention Paladins. Please report to the training hall. I repeat: all paladins to the training hall.”

Allura’s voice rang out over the intercom, rousing Keith from a deep sleep. _Shit, it’s too late for this._ Reluctantly he rolled out of bed, stiff from the lack of movement. He had been wanting to head to bed early, and thus he was already showered and in his boxers ready to sleep. _So much for an early night._ Keith pulled on his pants and a t-shirt, yawning as he headed down the hallway towards the training hall.

Luckily the other paladins looked just as tired as he was; Hunk was even in his star wars footsy pajamas. It was quite the sight.

               Seeing everyone had assembled, Allura began her interrogat—speech.

“Paladins, I’m sure you all know why I’ve called you here tonight.”

Lance yawned obnoxiously, “Why? I have no idea man. I just wanna get back to sleep.”

“Don’t be such an ass, Lance. Maybe if you could actually pay attention for once we could get this over with quicker,” Keith spat out, clearly angry.

Lance looked at Keith challengingly, raising his eyebrows as a threat.

“The Fuck, dude. I didn’t even do anything!”

Keith snorted. “Maybe that’s the fucking problem.”

Lance’s face was red by now, the anger obvious on his face.

               “This,” Allura gestured to Lance and Keith, “is the problem.”

The two looked up to Allura in confusion, quickly abandoning their trivial argument.

“Lance, Keith, this is a team intervention. I don’t know what has been going in with you two lately, but whatever it is it ends now. No one is leaving until this is resolved.”

“Fuck that, I’m outta here. I don’t have time for this,” Lance made for the door, which locked suddenly as soon as he got close.

Allura eyed Coran, who was up on the observation deck. He shot her a thumbs up, indicating that he had been the one to lock the doors. Allura grinned amusedly at him before returning to the issue at hand.

“Lance, get back here,” Shiro scolded.

Lance jimmied with the door for a few seconds, trying to find some way of escape. Finding none, he sighed heavily, returning to the group with his arms folded defiantly across his chest.

Shiro took over from there. His authority was unquestioned: no one dared defy him.

“Alright Keith. Speak up. What’s going on?”

Keith’s face turned pale as a ghost as his gaze settled on the floor.

“I already told you, Shiro. Nothings up.”

Lance, still clearly angry, laughed at this.

“Bullshit, dude. You’ve been avoiding me all week.”

It was Keith’s turn to get angry now, “ _I’ve_ been avoiding been avoiding _you?_ Are you kidding me? Anytime we are even in the same room you leave! You can’t even look me in the eye!”

Lance was furious beyond coherent thought.

“WELL MAYBE IF YOU’D STOP FUCKING MOANING IN PAIN ALL NIGHT I WOULDN’T FEEL SO GUILTY AND COULD ACTUALLY LOOK AT YOU IN THE EYE, YOU MORON!”

At that the room grew silent. Lance should have read the atmosphere. He should have stopped there. But the anger bubbling inside of him threatened to overflow, and seeking relief he let it burst forth.

“You and your cocky ass just _had_ to go and get yourself pregnant so that I could wait on you hand and foot anytime you get a little back ache. Well boohoo, it’s not my fault we’re in this mess.”

               Keith froze in place, his eyes wide. He was pale as a ghost before, but now it seemed as if he had no color at all. He stood unmoving like a corpse, staring at Lance in shock.

“Oh, hahaha Lance. You’re funny,” Pidge laughed earnestly, Hunk doing the same beside her.

Shiro turned his head to look at Keith, who looked near death.

“What’s this about pregnancy?” Shiro questioned, looking to Allura for an explanation.

               Keith was crying now, which shocked everyone in the room. Allura shot a deathly glare at Lance, grabbing Keith’s shoulder and leading him to the door. She motioned for Coran to open the door, and the two of them left the room.

“What… just happened?” Pidge questioned.

Soon after Coran appeared at the door.

“Paladins. There is something you should know.”

\---

“Keith is WHAT?” Pidge just about yelled.

The entire group flinched at her shrill voice, but they all inevitably wanted to ask the same question. Shiro was studying Coran’s face inquisitively, listening as he spoke, however Hunk and Pidge seemed to be off somewhere else, often glancing at each other in horror. Then there was Lance. He had frozen up entirely, as if made from stone, and had yet to say anything. It seemed Coran had finished speaking. _Why is everyone staring at me in silence?_

Lance finally appeared to have come to reality, eyeing the group warily.

“Ok, ok… So Keith is pregnant. What I don’t get is how _he,”_ Pidge gestured to Lance, “has anything to do with this.”

She made a good point. How in the world was he supposed to explain himself out of this one?

“Dude, how did you know? And why didn’t you tell anybody?” Hunk spoke.

Lance stuttered, struggling to find the right words to say. He didn’t want to admit that he had been the first one to notice that something was wrong. And he certainly wasn’t about to tell them about his new certain... Err… _skill set._

Finally he broke the silence.

“I just happened to be in the room when it was all found out. That’s all.”

Lance was fidgeting uncomfortable, looking anywhere and everywhere except for his teammates. None seemed too convinced. But then Coran nodded in agreement, vouching for his explanation. His answer seemed to tide them over for now, but he knew there would be more and more questions to come.

After a few more minutes of awkward chatter the group left. All returned to their rooms, probably struggling to take it all in. Except maybe for Lance. He had returned to his quarters, slumping himself down on the floor angrily. He made himself comfortable by leaning up against the bed, throwing his head back to stare at the ceiling. He’d sure messed up this time.

               Truth be told he had no idea why Keith was angry with him in the first place. Sure, after the fact things had become somewhat awkward… But that was to be expected, he thought. He had spent the entire week recounting his actions in his head, searching in vain for something big enough to warrant this kind of anger towards himself. But now he had gone and slipped his tongue. Keith surely had something to be angry about now.

               “Shit.”

               Lance face palmed, sinking lower to the floor. He needed to fix all of this. Now of all times Keith needed someone to be there for him. Sure, Keith had lived most of his life in solidarity. He made it clear that he relied upon no one. But even Allura had said that during a time like this a partner (or in Lance’s case, just some healing hands) is the best medicine. And deep down, he knew that once her heard Keith in pain again, he wouldn’t be able to do anything if Keith wouldn’t let him touch him. Its obvious Keith _needs_ somebody.

“Even if it isn’t me,” Lance’s stomach fell.

_Even if it isn’t me._


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When a mission goes terribly wrong, Keith is captured and raped by the Galra. Together with support from the team, and Lance-- who has a healing touch-- Keith attempts to recover. But everything changes when he finds out he is pregnant. Can he trust in Lance to help him through this?  
> ___  
> Just a warning:  
> Brief depiction of rape at the beginning  
> Male Pregnancy

Lance wasn’t sure why his stomach fell at those words.

_Even if it isn’t me._

Certainly it shouldn’t matter _who_ the one helping Keith out is. So long as he wasn’t in pain, was eating properly, and the like, who cares?

So why did he care?

“Uungh,” Lance groaned, frustrated for thinking these things.

He couldn’t make sense of his feelings, and after a long while pondering the day’s events, he gave up even trying. Surely it was just some weird maternal space instinct that he had, after all in space – he had learned – almost anything is possible.

               The next morning arrived way too quickly. The events of the night previous still lingered in everyone’s minds, evident by the painful silence settling over the breakfast table. Everyone had come to breakfast, as usual, but one seat was blaringly vacant. Lance wasn’t surprised. If he were in Keith’s shoes, he’d probably hide out for the rest of eternity. The entire morning carried on in silence, no one (not even the sarcastic Pidge) saying a word to anyone.

               _What did I do?_ Lance thought to himself, rubbing his temples. He hated to admit it, but this _was_ his fault. Probably. Lance shook his head, trying to focus on the training drone in front of him. Behind him.

“Ouch!”

Lance found himself falling onto his ass, catching his fall with his elbows. Maybe training right now isn’t the best idea. With a sigh he ended the training session, trudging to the shower. Hopefully the warm water could soothe his conscious, even if only a little.

               He made it to the public shower doors, pressing the button for the doors to slide open. He slung a towel over his shoulder, preparing to walk in when he was stopped in his tracks. From the spot he was standing he heard a muffled noise, followed by a sniff that was undeniably Keith’s.

“Shit. Now? Of all times?” Lance muttered under his breath, crouching to avoid being seen.

Why was he hiding? He had just as much of a right to be in this shower as Keith did. But something nagging at his insides told him to stay hidden, and not to interrupt this intimate moment.

               Lance crawled around the corner a bit, peeking around it silently. The pale figure sat huddled in the corner of the shower stall, his knees hugged tightly to his chest. His body shook heavily as he cried, and Lance noticed the deep redness of his eyes. The entire room was filled with steam, and judging from the bright red splotches on Keith’s skin left by the hot water, he had been in here a while.

               Lance’s heart just about flipped over in his chest. He felt guilty. Nobody should have to go through what Keith was. And no one should have to do it alone. With all this in mind, though, he still couldn’t bring himself to get any closer to the huddled figure. Lance peered back around the corner for another look. Keith’s long black hair clung to the frame of his face, snaking its way across his gaunt cheekbones.

Now that he noticed it, Keith looked a lot thinner than usual. The bones of his wrist stuck out greatly, and even his ribs were prominent. It was no wonder, what with all of the meals he had been missing. But there was something that was plump about him. Keith’s abdomen was a bit distended, a round hump forming about his hips. How hadn’t he noticed? Lance shivered.

In his defense Keith hadn’t been out much lately. He had almost all but quit his daily training sessions, and he rarely (if ever) made it to the table for meals. But even so, how could he have been so oblivious? Lance silently cursed himself, slamming his fist against the wall. The action made a loud noise, reverberating off of the shower walls. All at once Keith looked up, scanning the room for anybody.

“Hello?” Keith called out shakily, tears still streaming somewhat from his face.

_Shit._ Lance crawled to the door as quickly as he could, exiting the showers and then all out sprinting to his room. Hopefully Keith hadn’t seen him, or he would never be able to make up with him again.

               After seeing _that,_ Lance knew something had to be done. And that something had to be done _now._ Lance pondered the best course of action. He _could_ go and apologize, face to face, but he was almost certain that Keith wouldn’t accept him. After all, he _is_ Keith. Instead he opted to talk to Allura. Maybe she would have some advice.

               Lance heard the door adjacent to his close, indicating that Keith had returned to his room. Now would be a good time to go talk to her, Keith out of ear shot. Lance found Allura at the helm of the castle, fiddling with some buttons on the keypad. She noticed him walk in, turning to face Lance with a smile.

_At least she isn’t still pissed with me about yesterday._

               “Lance! How can I help you?”

Lance gulped nervously. How should he word this? He couldn’t mention what he had just seen in the showers, but he didn’t want to come off as _overly_ concerned. He was afraid that would send the wrong message.

“Uh, well as you know Keith and I…” Allura eyed him warily, “well we haven’t been getting along lately. And, well, I’d like to apologize to him. I just don’t know how. I was hoping you could give me some… erm… advice.”

               The Princess’ features brightened, a wry smile forming on her lips.

“I’m glad, Lance, that you want to apologize. I’m sure you know how important it is that Keith have some support during this unfortunate journey.”

Lance winced at that.

“In my experience, its best to let things calm down a bit. Then start doing subtle things for him. Offer him a friend to lean on. He’ll probably reject you at first, but you have to be persistent. Then, when you feel the time is right, apologize to him,” Allura said.

               When she had finished speaking, Lance thanked her for her advice. As he left the helm, his mind wandered. _Subtle things._

“What kind of subtle things?” he said to himself.

What did that mean, exactly? Whatever it meant, time was running out quickly. The day was coming to end (Or at least that’s what the clock indicated, there was on way to tell in the endless black of space) and Lance wasn’t sure how many nights he could take being forced to listen to Keith’s agonizing moans. Especially knowing that he couldn’t do anything about them.

               About an hour later everyone gathered around the dinner table, save the one seat that typically remained empty. When the meal was just about finished, Hunk cleared his throat loudly. No one payed him any mind, everyone continuing to eat their green goo. Hunk did it once more, much to the annoyance of Lance, who was not in the best of moods at the moment.

“What is it, Hunk? You have our attention now,” Lance sniped.

Hunk ignored the snarkiness of his comment, finally voicing what he wanted to say.

               “Well, it’s about Keith. He never seems to make it to meals. So I was thinking maybe one of us should, I dunno, take it to him?”

_Subtle acts of kindness._ That’s something he could do.

“I’ll do it!” Lance blurted out a bit too hastily.

Pidge gave him a sideways glance, adjusting her glasses.

“Maybe that’s not the best idea. Perhaps someone else could—“

“Nonsense!” Lance interjected, “I’ll do it.”

A knowing smile spread across Allura’s face as she spoke, “Go ahead, Lance.”

               Lance took the plate off green goo off of the table and practically _ran_ to Keith’s door. But once faced with the large metal doors, he halted.

“Should I like, knock and go in?”

That probably wasn’t the best way to do things. The red light above the door indicated that it was locked, which was rare for any of the paladins. After the mishap with the castle trying to attack them, they thought it safest to leave doors unlocked. After all, they could just knock. But Keith would need to let him in. There’s little to no chance of that happening.

               Lance decided to leave the food on the floor, knocking a few times and then turning tail to his own room.

“Who is it?” Keith called out.

But no one answered. Frustrated, Keith rose from his bed painfully and opened the door.

“This better be fucking good—“ his voice trailed off, finding no one in the hallway.

Out of the corner of his eye, however, he caught Lance’s door closing. Keith glanced around the hallway, looking for anyone else. Finally his gaze settled on the goo on the floor.

“That idiot,” Keith mumbled to himself.

               Now that he thought about it, however, he was really hungry. Skipping meals had really taken its toll on his body, but there were days that he just couldn’t bring himself to leave his bed. Reassuring himself that no one else was around, he picked up the goo and disappeared back into his room.

Lance came out a few minutes later under the guise of taking a shower (though he did really need one, since he wasn’t able to get one earlier) only to find the goo gone. A warm smile spread across his lips. Sure, it hadn’t been much. But it was a start.

               This routine continued over the next couple of days. If Keith didn’t make it to the table (which, let’s be honest, he didn’t) Lance would bring the food to his door. And invariably, it would disappear and the empty dish would appear outside the following day. Keith had hardly left his room in a week. Lance knew that Shiro had been helping him to the shower every once and a while, but otherwise that was it.

               Keith’s nightly outbursts had continue to grow worse. Lance knew he needed to apologize, but he still wasn’t sure when. He had to find the right timing. These thoughts plagued his mind as he set the food goo outside of Keith’s door. He knocked, and was startled when the door flew open most immediately. Keith stood in the doorway, looking down at Lance setting down the goo.

“Uh, Um. Sorry,” Lance fumbled with his words, seeking the nearest escape route.

“Thanks.”

Lance looked up, stunned.

“Uh, what for? I haven’t done anything,” Lance muttered.

Keith chuckled.

“Idiot. I know it’s been you leaving food on my doorstep the last few days.”

Lance stood up fully. He’d been pretty good about getting away before the door opened.

“How’d you know?” Lance finally asked.

Keith met his eyes, clutching the wall to help prop himself up. Getting out of bed had been tougher and tougher. The effort of walking to the door even left him winded. But Keith was tired of fighting with Lance. Sure, he’d made a mistake. But what’s done is done, and Keith knew that sooner or later he would be unable to even stand. Whether he wanted to admit it or not, he was going to need help.

“I saw your door closing the first time, smart one. But really, I appreciate it.”

Lance fiddled with his fingers, shifting from foot to foot nervously. _I should probably apologize now._

“Well if that’s all—“ Keith started, getting ready to close the door.

“Wait.”

Keith looked at Lance in surprise for a second before his features melded back to their usual self.

“What is it?” Keith asked, annoyed.

Lance took a deep breath. _Time is running out. I need to do this now._

“Um, could we talk?”

Keith stared at him expressionless for a few (long) seconds before speaking up again.

“I can’t stand for that long. So just… come inside, I guess.”

Lance watched as Keith winced as he hobbled over to the bed, shifting onto it uncomfortably. Poor Keith. He could hardly stand. The pain must be pretty bad to keep Keith from moving around, he knew. Lance hesitantly trod into the bedroom as the sliding doors closed behind him. He took a seat on a chair in the corner of the room, watching as Keith ate.

               His condition had certainly improved since the time he’d seen him in the showers. His arms had filled out a bit more, his face no longer hollow. The food had certainly done him good.

“Keith, I’d like to apologize for before. I never should have said the things I did, especially not in front of everybody.”

Keith paused his eating, “It’s fine. I knew it would get out sooner or later. Everyone knew something was wrong. I guess now they just know why.”

Lance’s relief showed on his face. _That went better than I expected._ All the tenseness from the last few days eased from his muscles. He hadn’t felt this relaxed in ages, he thought. Actually, he hadn’t felt this relieved since Keith stepped out of that healing pod after being ----

Lance cleared his throat just to fill the silence. It should have felt awkward, but it didn’t. There was something comforting about the stillness that had settled over the two of them. That is, until Keith winced, dropping his spork.

               “You okay?” Lance asked, genuinely concerned.

Keith clutched his abdomen, which was obscured by the sheets. _It’s not time already, is it!???_ Lance’s worry must have shown on his face, because Keith spoke up.

“It’s just painful, that’s all.”

Lance bit his lip. He knew he could do something about it. But would it be too much too soon? He didn’t want to undo the progress he had just made.

“Oh, uh… okay.”

_Idiot!_

“Let me know if there’s anything I can do.”

Keith waved a hand at him, acknowledging Lance’s offer. Lance then stood, leaving the room guiltily.

 

               Lance was awoken that night by a pounding on the wall. Keith’s room (and bed) are adjacent to his own, so he knew Keith had hit the wall. Attributing it to a nightmare or something, he closed his eyes once more. When he heard the sound a second time, his eyes fluttered open. What in the world was going on over there?

The third time he heard Keith’s voice.

“Lance,” Keith’s voice sounded desperate.

He was wide awake now. Lance shot up out of bed and dressed himself, not even hesitating to go through the doors to Keith’s room. As his eyes adjusted to the dark, he made out Keith’s figure on the bed. He was curled up into a ball, sweat covering his entire body. The frail figure’s chest shuddered with every breath, tears running down his pale white face.

“Oh my god, are you okay? Should I go get somebody? Maybe Allura—“Lance was interrupted by a death grip around his wrist.

The black haired male shook his head, struggling to speak.

               “Last time… D-do what you did… last time,” Keith managed to squeak out between haggard breaths.

 Lance blushed, heat rising all the way to his ears. This time was different, right? He asked for it. Lance crawled into bed next to Keith, the two occupying a spooning position. In any other instance this would be really awkward, but in the heat of the moment neither of them paid it any mind. Lance pushed up Keith’s black shirt and found purchase on his hip, his other hand on Keith’s lower back just as before. He began the same massaging motion as the first time, continuing this for a few minutes.           

               But something didn’t seem right.

“It’s not… HA… working,” Keith breathed.

He was right. His motions seemed to be doing nothing for poor Keith, who still lay in bed with his teeth clenched tight. Allura told him this might happen. If this pressure point won’t work, he’d need to try a more… intimate one. Lance had been hoping he wouldn’t have to use the more intimate points he had practiced, but seeing Keith like this… He had no choice.

               “Keith, I know another spot to make you feel better, but it’s kind of in a sensitive place—“

“JUST DO IT!” Keith scolded, desperate for any sort of relief.

Keith’s pain had never been this bad before. Coran had told him that the pain would get worse, but being cocky as he is, he thought he could handle it. He was wrong. So, so wrong.

Lance flipped Keith to face him, sliding his hand up Keith’s inner thigh until it rested dangerously close to Keith’s crotch. With his other hand he found Keith’s navel, and pinched it hard. Keith squealed, trying to jerk away from Lance’s hand.

“Just try to bear with me for a while,” Lance reassured, “you’ll feel better soon.”

               And Lance was right. After about a minute of massaging and pinching, Keith’s muscles began to loosen; the contorted expression on his face turned to one of near ecstasy.

“L- Lance,” Keith whined, “Feels… good.”

Lance was red up to his ears. There was something oddly… sexual about all of this, and it made Lance nervous. He couldn’t help but stare down at the writhing body in front of him; heavily pregnant, but strangely sensual. Blood started rushing places it ought not to, and Lance scooted away so as to maintain as much distance as possible. _Please don’t notice,_ Lance prayed. But his worries proved unnecessary, as the figure before him slumped into a deep sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know i could have edited this chapter to make it a bit more readable, but quite frankly its 3 AM and I really just wanted to get this out there. Maybe in the future I'll go back and fix it up, lol. Thanks for bearing with me! :P


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When a mission goes terribly wrong, Keith is captured and raped by the Galra. Together with support from the team, and Lance-- who has a healing touch-- Keith attempts to recover. But everything changes when he finds out he is pregnant. Can he trust in Lance to help him through this?  
> ___  
> Just a warning:  
> Brief depiction of rape at the beginning  
> Male Pregnancy

Lance didn’t want to move. He looked down at Keith’s dainty frame huddled next to him; Keith’s back was pressed up against his stomach, the poor thing immersed in an exhaustive sleep. Keith’s small hands were clasped around the bed sheets loosely, his chest rising and falling in rhythmic breaths. The paleness of his bare back practically illuminated the pitch black room, and Lance wasn’t ever going to admit that he noticed.

               Keith can be a pain in the ass sometimes, but with the trouble of this entire ordeal his personality had… mellowed a bit. Lance had never seen a man so filled with pride look so _fragile_ before. It gave him a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach. But at the same time, he had never felt closer to him: both physically and mentally. In fact, he hadn’t been able to get Keith off his mind lately. Had Keith eaten? Was Keith in pain? Did Keith get enough sleep? Lance felt like a doting parent. _No. That’s not quite right._ He felt like… a partner?

“AGH!” Lance silent screamed, practically jumping off the bed.

               It was nothing like that. Keith just needed someone to help him through a rough time. And out in space, Lance was the only option. Right?

“Shit.”

Lance kicked his door frame as he entered his room. Surely he was just overtired. And maybe… confused? Keith had never been so needy before, or nice for that matter. It’s like the Keith he once knew was gone, and in his place was an entirely new person. A person who relied on him, _needed_ him. Lance sat down on his bed, running his hands through his hair in frustration. Now that he thought about it, Keith kinda was like a partner.  He brought him food, he had shared the same bed… but he certainly wasn’t attracted to him. No way.

               How could _anyone_ possibly like his jet black hair that he’d pull into a cute little pony tail whenever he trained? And no one could be attracted to a guy with skin as pale as porcelain, a frame so delicate you could wrap your entire arms around him easily; with muscles so hard that you couldn’t ever deny he was male; yet something strangely alluring about his long eyelashes that fluttered closed when near the throes of sleep. There’s no way Lance could ever be attracted to someone like that. After all, he was Keith. The Keith that angered easily, the Keith who curls his lips into a little pout whenever he doesn’t get what he wants.

“Fuck,” Lance mumbled, throwing himself down onto the mattress.

               Who was he kidding? Keith was extremely attractive and he knew it. Why else would he have been so flustered whenever he was forced into close proximity with him? Just minutes ago he even got… Lance cringed…hard. Like, dangerously hard. Lance knew Keith was only acting the wat he was due to circumstances, and yet he also felt like he’d been able to witness a side of Keith he’d never seen before. A side of Keith that was delicate, kind, and even needy. A side of Keith he knew no one had ever seen before. Why had Keith chosen to let Lance, of all people, see it? It couldn’t be that Keith liked him. No. It was just the pregnancy. They were both victims of circumstance.

               Even if that was the case, it doesn’t change the fact that Lance had been able to see that side of Keith. And it doesn’t change the fact that Lance had grown to like him in a different way because of that. Keith. Keith with his stupid smile and mesmerizing purple eyes. Keith with those slender arms and prominent hip bones that stuck out cutely. His little hands, which he often clasped tight just like a child. Lance’s thoughts were overwhelmed with him. His body, his smile, his vulnerability.

               He hadn’t noticed his state until it was too late. Heat rushed to his hips, and now Lance was keenly aware of the hardness between his legs. His pants were too tight… too tight. He slid them down over his hips, just enough to free himself from the pressure. No one was awake now. He could masturbate without fear of being caught. Fuck it.

               Lance gave in to the temptation, wrapping his hand around his shaft. His hand moved hesitantly at first, making slow trips up and down, pausing ever so slightly at the tip as to pay a little extra attention there. Lance allowed his thoughts to be filled with Keith. He imagined being able to roam his hands around Keith’s body freely, the raven haired male squirming in pleasure beneath him. He imagined sucking on the cute nubs of Keith’s nipples, which would turn a bright pink under his attentions.

“Shit,” Lance moaned, increasing his pace.

               Lance gripped himself tighter, imagining that it wasn’t his hand that was moving, but Keith’s, who was desperate for his body. Keith would tease him relentlessly, until finally Lance would get impatient and flip him onto his back. He would be free to caress the man beneath him, to tease him wildly, to make love to him as he held onto him tightly.

“AH!”

Lance was panting now, his dick seeking as much friction as possible. He ran his thumb over the tip, thumbing the slit there eagerly. Lance’s whole body felt tight. His muscled tensed, his toes curled. He could feel his orgasm building quickly, and he was growing more and more impatient with every passing second.

“Keith…” he whispered.

All at once his breath hitched as he climaxed, the waves of pleasure washing over his entire being until he was drowning in it. It took a couple of minutes for his breath to slow, and finally Lance came back to reality.

               “Did I Just…?”

Crap. _I’m in deep now._ Lance stared down at his hand, which was now covered with the evidence of his lust. He’d just masturbated to Keith. Keith, the guy right next door.

“I like Keith,” Lance mumbled, finally admitting it to himself.

“I like Keith.”

               Lance finally realized his feelings. But he was determined that he would do everything in his power to hide them so that things could remain the same. The last thing this ship needed was even _more_ drama. Dealing with Keith’s pregnancy was enough. And so weeks passed, the team doing its best without Keith to form Voltron and Lance continuing to take care of Keith when he needed. Keith had lost all sense of embarrassment by now and had no problem yelling for Lance’s help. Lance figured he must be in _a whole lot of pain_ to swallow his pride and ask _him_ for help.

               The swell of Keith’s stomach grew with each passing day, and currently Keith looked like he shoved a balloon up his shirt—he was so big that he had to waddle to and from the bathroom. Lance found it strangely endearing, but Keith complained _constantly._ It was cute, honestly. But with the swell of his stomach came a new worry. Surely the baby would have to… like… come out sooner or later? And when that time came, what was going to happen?

Allura had been sure to inform the team _all about_ male pregnancy (and them some—Lance cringed) as soon as the news was released. And they all knew that it was risky. What if something happened to their red paladin? Then the whole universe would be in danger. They had been managing for now, but truthfully without all five of them very little could be accomplished. Despite all the worry Coran had assured them all that he was experienced in this sort of thing, but knowing Coran… who really knew. Maybe he was just trying to calm everyone’s nerves. Not that it was working.

“I can’t even imagine what Keith is feeling right now,” Lance mused.

“Lance! Help, please!” Keith yelled to him.

Pain. Right now, Keith was feeling pain. At least that was something Lance could fix. Lance jogged to Keith’s room, not even knocking at this point. This had become so routine that the two had just accepted the awkwardness. Keith didn’t cringe at his touch any more, and Lance never hesitated to crawl into bed with the surly Keith. Lance had been lucky in that he hadn’t needed to progress to Allura’s so called “drastic measures” technique, which involved knowing Keith far more than he could handle at this point. It was hard enough controlling himself when he was forced to share a bed with Keith, let alone anything _else._

               It didn’t take long to subdue Keith, the pregnant male melting into his touch as if he relished it. The two paladins must have dozed off at some point, as Lance awoke to find his arm around Keith who had cuddled into his chest while he slept. _Fuck me._ Of course the guy he liked just so happened to be flipping _huddled next to him_ as if it was the most natural thing in the world. Why must the gods test him so!?? Lance ogled the sleeping figure next to him. He was so peaceful when he slept. His soft black hair draped over his face, obscuring most of his features. _That won’t do,_ Lance thought. Careful not to wake him, Lance brushed Keith’s hair behind his ear, tucking it there gingerly.

               The sleeping lump didn’t stir. From this vantage point Keith looked… what’s the right word, in this case? Vulnerable? Innocent? Beautiful. Lance couldn’t help but study the man beside him. He noted his every feature, from the little freckles on his cheeks to the soft roundness of his lips. Lance couldn’t help himself, pausing to run his thumb over the curves of Keith’s lower lip.

“Lance?”

Lance was startled when he heard Keith speak his name. _Crap. Did he see…?_

“Uh, how long have you been awake?” Lance questioned, pulling his hand away swiftly.

Lance shifted uncomfortably. He had been caught in the act, probably.

“Not long,” Keith said unceremoniously, seemingly unaware of what had just happened seconds earlier.

Maybe he didn’t see. That sure was close. Feeling a bit relieved, Lance settled back down into the bed. But then he realized that he was spooning. With Keith. Who was awake. Lance’s heart jumped, afraid he would be reprimanded for staying there. But Keith made no move to push him away. Instead he seemed comfortable, almost as if he had grown used to Lance’s constant close proximity. Lance usually left after he helped Keith out. This was the first time that he had stayed, albeit accidentally. Keith didn’t seem to mind. (In actuality, he relished this time. It was lonely, stuck in the same room all the time)

               “Hey Keith,” Lance started.

“Yeah?”

“Are you scared?”

There was a long pause, and Lance wondered if he shouldn’t have asked. It was none of his business after all, but he couldn’t help but worry about him.

“…Yeah.”

Lance attempted to make more conversation, but as fast as lightning Keith was out again. Lance probably should go back to his room now. But somehow he knew he just couldn’t. A chance like this may never happen again, after all. With a small sigh he threw an arm around Keith once more, pulling him close before himself falling into a sweet sleep filled with dreams of Keith.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I always seem to end chapters with sleepy time. It just seems like the right time to break, lol. Thanks everyone for reading!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long, University is a killer :( Anyways I totally intended this whole story to be like only a short few chapters, and was going to end it with one long chapter but then I had an idea. (Of course, more work for me lol) And there were too many unanswered questions, so I guess this will be a bit longer than I thought. ~~Hopefully some loose ends will be tied up here shortly oh~~

Lance thought he was asleep. Keith had faked being asleep to avoid the awkwardness of both their conversation and Lance’s close proximity. Something was weird, and Lance was acting really strange. Or at least more strange than usual. Keith had opened his eyes to find Lance _staring at him._ He stroked his hair, touched his lips, all in a sort of… sensual daze. Keith had remained frozen in place, unsure of what to do. It was Lance, of all people. He was the silly kid who always had some snide remark to direct at him, the guy who made sure that _everyone_ on the ship knew that he was a whole inch taller than Keith just because. So when he awoke to find that very person gazing at him longingly, he panicked. If he hadn’t spoken up, would Lance have done something… more?

A loud snore interrupted Keith’s thoughts. Lance had fallen asleep beside him, his arm draped over Keith haphazardly. The warm skin of Lance’s stomach lay flush against Keith’s bare back. The warmth felt good. He hadn’t realized it, but he couldn’t remember the last time he was this close to somebody. Of course, it was Lance. He didn’t really count. Regardless, Keith snuggled closer into Lance’s heat, relishing the warmth and security he felt there.

It had been harder and harder for Keith to fall asleep lately. Sure, the pain was bad. Excruciating, even. But he couldn’t keep his mind from wandering back to that day; what could he have done differently? How could he have avoided it? He shuddered at the thought. _Stop it, brain! I don’t want to remember!_ But it was as if his brain had a will of its own, bringing back the memories he has tried so hard to forget. The capture, the Galra Captain, the--- _rape. I was raped._ Keith whimpered unconsciously, curling himself up as much as possible despite the arm around his body. Keith clutched the bed sheets tightly, clenching his teeth and squeezing his eyes shut tight. _Stop. Make it stop. Please…_

Keith’s thoughts were interrupted suddenly as the arm around him pulled him in closer, Lance resting his chin atop Keith’s head. He could hear Lance’s soft breathing clearly, and in his close proximity he could hear the other man’s heart beat steadily in his chest. The rhythm was mesmerizing, consuming any thoughts he was having and replacing them with those that were utterly filled with _him._ With Lance, the guy who was supposed to be his rival, but due to some twisted change of fate ended up occupying the same bed. Lance, that goofy kid who found any and every opportunity to be annoying, yet strangely charming.

All he needed was someone to share the burden with him. Keith’s mind had turned into a prison, and for some reason Lance held the key. And that stupid idiot hadn’t realized it yet.

               After a surprisingly restful night of sleep, Keith awoke to an empty bed. He wasn’t sure when, but Lance must have left sometime throughout the night. It was actually kind of disappointing.

“Wait… _what?”_

Sure, maybe it would have been nice to wake up in someone’s arms. After all, that was a natural human instinct, right? After so many days spent alone out in the desert (where let’s face it—chances of any human contact were slim to none) you learned to relish another person’s company. And there was something unnerving about the fact that when he finally had it, it suddenly just… _disappeared._

               It surely had nothing to do with Lance himself. Any person would do. It’s instinct.

“What… What _is that?”_ Keith gasped suddenly.

His stomach just… moved. Hesitantly he brought his hands to his bare stomach, resting them there gingerly. The baby was kicking him. _From the inside._

“What’s that little fucker doing in there? Geez,” Keith mumbled to himself.

The sensation itself was weird. It wasn’t painful, but each kick caught him by surprise. There was a little being inside him, thrashing around on its own accord. Maybe in some other circumstance this would be a really cool moment, but the knowledge that the baby inside of him had a will of his/her own was somewhat… terrifying. 

It had never occurred to him until right now that he wasn’t just pregnant, but there was something _living inside of him._ Even worse was the fact that it was one of _them,_ the Galra. What would it look like? Human? Galra? Some sort of mix of both? What if it didn’t like him? _I don’t think I can raise a baby on my own._

These thoughts raced through his head a mile a minute, and surely any minute now he would keel over from hyperventilation. Keith had totally forgotten. This thing is going to come out. And from the looks of his stomach, it wasn’t going to be long.

The blaring of the alarm system finally averted his attention. Great. This is exactly what he needed right now. With a protesting groan Keith attempted to dress himself. But when he pulled his shirt over his head, he was startled to find that it didn’t cover his stomach at all. _Shit… How long has it been since I’ve worn a shirt?_ The answer didn’t really matter at the moment: he just needed something to wear fast. With a quick survey of the hallway, finding it empty, Keith snuck across the hallway into Shiro’s closet and stole one of his. The man was undeniably bigger than him, and surely he wouldn’t miss a single shirt.

“Hope he doesn’t notice,” Keith laughed.

               When he arrived at the ship’s helm, everyone was already there. Allura had already started briefing the team, until she finally noticed Keith standing there. She seemed startled to find him there, eyeing him curiously.

“Uh, Keith. We weren’t expecting you,” she started, “But given your condition I think you should return to bed. We’ve just picked up a distress beacon not too far away, the other paladins should be able to handle it.”

               But. But he was a member of Voltron. They can’t form it without him there… What if something went wrong? _My condition is fine. I’ve never felt better._ He wanted to say it. Wanted to prove to everyone that he was still the same old Keith, they didn’t need to treat him like he was made of glass. Sure, he was pregnant, but that fact didn’t change anything. They were a team. _Are. They are a team._ Right? Keith shifted uncomfortably, clearing his throat.

“I’m totally fine, I’ll go with everyone.”

               The team shot each other concerned glances, urging someone to say something. Finally Lance gave in, addressing Keith directly.

“Keith, we’d love to have you. Really. But it’s too dangerous for you in this state right now. We have to do what’s best for the team, and your safety is priority. Don’t worry, we can handle it on our own for now. You need to conserve your energy.”

Keith glanced at Pidge and Hunk standing off to the side. Both nodded in agreement. Shiro and Allura voiced their approval as well. What the hell!?? Just because he was pregnant didn’t mean he was useless! Keith could feel the anger threatening to bubble forth. He didn’t want to cause any trouble, he just wanted everything to go back to the way it was before. He missed flying. He missed Shiro’s commanding voice over the intercom. Heck, he even missed Lance’s stupid piloting skills that often put everyone in danger.

               Keith’s face turned a deep red. He couldn’t say that. He knew they were just looking out for him, but even so… he was angry. Any minute now and he could snap at someone, but that’s the last thing he wanted.

“Oh. I guess you’re right,” Keith relented, “I’m just gonna go then.”

_Don’t let them see._ Tears threatened to come. _Don’t let them see._ Keith walked out hurriedly, making a beeline for his quarters. _Don’t let them see._

               It was a few hours later when the team finally returned from their mission. The room was filled with excited chatter, the team discussing the mission in detail. Keith sat in silence, half paying attention to everything. He didn’t want to know how much fun they had without him. It’s just make everything worse.

“Paladins,” It was Allura’s voice, “As you know the threat of Galra invasion on this planet is imminent. That’s why until then, we will remain docked here. In the mean time I’d like you to remain on high alert, just in case.”

               That didn’t seem like the brightest of ideas. Could they hold off an entire planet against Galra invasion without Voltron? Sitting here and waiting to get attacked just seemed stupid. Keith attempted to butt in, but Pidge beat him to it.

“Quite frankly, Princess, that’s suicide. Shouldn’t we leave so we can at least have the element of surprise? We’re already down one member,” everyone’s eyes drifted to Keith, “and we can’t form Voltron.”

Hunk nodded in agreement.

“Yeah I’d prefer not to just sit around and wait to be attacked,” he said, scratching his chin thoughtfully, “I very much value my life.”

The conversation lulled for a minute, everyone deep in their own thoughts on the matter. The arguments for and against it continued, but Keith suddenly couldn’t focus.

               He placed a hand between his legs, finding the seat wet.

“Uh, guys…” Keith mumbled.

No one seemed to pay him any attention, until Lance noticed the look of fear on Keith’s face. Their eyes met momentarily, until Lance’s eyes grew wide with realization.

Lance turned pale as a ghost, bolting upright and somehow managing  to stammer out an incoherent strand of  words.

“It’s coming. Oh, God… now? Guys it’s coming, Keith’s water broke. Where is Coran? We need Coran! Oh my god what do we do? It’s coming,” Lance babbled on and on, seemingly more nervous than Keith was himself.

               All conversation stopped, everyone’s eyes were on him now. _I can’t do this. I’m not ready, it’ll hurt. What if I die?_ Keith was hyperventilating now. _I can’t do this._ Finally Allura regained her composure, and began ordering everyone around.

“Pidge, go get Coran. Tell him its time. Hunk, I’ll need blankets, water, and the first aid kit, bring it to the infirmary. Shiro, I need you to carry Keith to the Infirmary, I’ll meet you there.”

There was a quick bustling of feet as Hunk and Pidge left the room at a run, and soon Keith found himself being swept up in Shiro’s arms as he was carried to the infirmary. He would’ve been embarrassed at being carried like a princess at any other time, but truthfully he was glad that everyone seemed so composed. He couldn’t even think clearly, let alone walk himself to the infirmary.

               “Princess, what should I do?” Lance bounced up and down nervously, wanting to be of some sort of help.

Allura eyed him from the corner of her eye, trying to think of something. Finding nothing, she spoke again.

“I think that’s it right now Lance. Just be on standby in case we need you, ok?”

Lance’s expression sunk. He wanted to help, in fact he _needed_ to.

Anything to get his nervous mind focused on something else. He was worried. Keith was strong, he knew, but that didn’t diminish his worry for him. All he could do is hover around and pray that nothing would go wrong.

“I’m rooting for you, Keith. I’ll be there for you,” Lance whispered to himself, “I’m here.”


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When a mission goes terribly wrong, Keith is captured and raped by the Galra. Together with support from the team, and Lance-- who has a healing touch-- Keith attempts to recover. But everything changes when he finds out he is pregnant. Can he trust in Lance to help him through this?  
> ___  
> Just a warning:  
> Brief depiction of rape at the beginning  
> Male Pregnancy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long, finals week was brutal. I've been waiting so loooong to write this and I had such high expectations for it, but I'm a little disappointed with how it turned out. Regardless, I hope you enjoy, and thanks for reading:)

It couldn’t have happened at a worse time. Not only was the entire castle on edge in anticipation of Keith’s impending delivery, but something even worse threatened and made itself known by the blaring over the castle’s loud speakers.

“Oh fuck, _now?_ ” Lance slammed his fist into the wall adjacent to him.

Of course. Of course they were here. Would it be too much to ask for a day or two of silence during this _especially trying_ time for Keith? Coran had barely gone into the infirmary with Keith when the sirens went off. Lance had to admit it: the Galra had impeccable timing. _Simply impeccable._

               The whole castle flew into a scramble, Allura running to the cockpit to determine the severity of the situation. In the meantime, the other paladins needed to suit up. As much as they all wanted to be there for the birth of the baby, they had a duty to the universe. So the entire crew (minus one important player who was currently _preoccupied_ at the moment) ran to go change. It was hard to believe that just moments before the entire team had stood in panic outside the infirmary.

               Coran stayed in the infirmary with Keith. No matter how dire a situation the castle may be in, someone needed to help Keith through the delivery. Coran seemed the most… qualified? Maybe that isn’t the right word but fuck it he was the only one who had every delivered a baby before so it was Keith and the baby’s best chance.

“Paladins, a Galra ship has been detected on our radar. At this rate, they should be upon us in no less than ten minutes,” Allura reported, “I know this isn’t exactly the best time for this sort of thing to be happening, but I’m afraid we have no choice. The four of you are going to have to go out there and defend the castle for as long as possible while the castle prepares for a jump. In any other situation, we might have stayed to fight, but I’m afraid—“

Allura’s voice was interrupted unceremoniously by Shiro, which was out of character for him but given the circumstances, not all that surprising.

“Princess, we understand. Getting Keith to safety is the most important thing right now, I think everyone will agree,” Pidge, Hunk, and Lance all nodded, “So just tell us what we need to do.”

               The current plan was to fight off the enemy scout ships and whatever else the main ship was going to throw at them while the castle prepared for the jump, then they would return and make a quick getaway.

“To your lions!” Allura commanded.

Lance took one last glance at the infirmary door, which was shut tight. If he listened closely enough, he could just faintly make out the sound of Keith’s screams, and Coran trying his best to soothe him. Lance cringed, balling his hands into tight fists.

“Hang in there buddy. I’ll be back before you know it.”

               A few minutes later and the four paladins were in their lions and out of their docking bays. The first of the scouting ships were relatively easy to handle, but now the ship knew their location, and reinforcements were sure to start arriving any second now. The mother ship finally came into view, and the team were taken aback by how large it was. This was no ordinary Galra ship. This was a ship captained by someone important. This was a ship who would have the capability to send wave after wave of fighters, and they couldn’t even form Voltron to stop them.

“Uh, I don’t mean to be pessimistic but do you guys see that huge mother ship?” Hunks voice came in over the intercom.

“That’s no ordinary Galra ship,” Pidge agreed, “We need to get out of here—and fast.”

Allura broke into the conversation over the intercom, shedding light on their situation.

“Pidge, you’re right. That isn’t a typical ship. That ship belongs to a commander of Zarkon’s Army, though there’s no telling which one. We are far out powered, I’m afraid, but you’ll all just need to hang in there and keep them away from the castle while we warm up for the jump.”

               The team was now faced with a continuous stream of fighter ships. While they weren’t all that hard to target and fire at, the sheer number of them soon proved to be overwhelming. While the team was occupied, the commanding ship grew closer and closer.

“Uh, Shiro? I think, and I may be wrong, that the big ship is warming up a laser,” Pidge said, hoping to God she was wrong.

Just as she had said, the commanding ship’s laser was now glowing a soft purple, and it was obvious that the ship had indeed spotted the castle and intended on firing at it.

Shiro made a strange grunting noise, turning his lion towards the ship in order to better assess the situation.

“Allura?”

“Yes, Shiro?”

“How long we got until that jump? The commanding ship is arming its laser and there’s no way the castle will be able to take a hit like that for very long.”

Lasers flew freely at the Galra fighting ships as the team awaited her response. At this rate, they were going to become overwhelmed pretty quickly. Without Voltron, there wasn’t much to do.

“We still aren’t ready. Hold them off as long as you can! And Lance! I need you back at the castle stat!”

Wait, what? Given the nature of this situation the team could use all the help they could get. They were already down one member, could they make it without two? What could be so important that he needed to return to the cast--- Keith.

               Lance’s heart fell to the pit of his stomach, his entire body growing cold. Was it Keith? What was wrong? Did something happen?

“WHAT!!?” Lance finally yelled.

“Don’t ask questions, just get back here _now._ ”

The tone of Allura’s voice changed at that last word, sending a chill down his spine. Whatever it was, she meant business, and he wasn’t about to argue at this point. With a sigh Lance withdrew from the flurry of lasers, making a beeline for the castle. The fighting behind him became the least of his worries, for as soon as he landed he practically bailed from his lion and sprinted straight for the infirmary.

“LANCE!”

Lance ran faster.

“I NEED _LANCE!”_

His feet couldn’t carry him any quicker.

“LAAAANCE!!!!”

Lance ran towards Keith’s screaming, cursing his feet for not going any faster. Finally he made it to the infirmary doors, where Coran was waiting for him.

               He approached the doors intently, not even noticing Coran’s presence until he was met with an arm blocking the entryway. Startled, Lance looked up to find Coran there, one arm blocking his entrance.

“Lance,” Coran looked relieved, “I haven’t been able to calm him down. The contractions are coming quickly now, it should only be a matter of a few hours now. He just won’t calm down, he just keeps calling for you. I didn’t know what to do, and I’m sorry for calling you away from the battle but—“

“Coran,” Lance interrupted, “Let me in.”

Coran noticed the serious look on Lance’s face. He couldn’t ever recall Lance looking so intent on something, his mouth set in a stern pout and eyebrows furrowed tightly together, giving him a strange look of intensity that was unlike anything he’d ever witnessed before.

               “I’ll let you in, Lance, but I am just warning you, it isn’t pretty in there.”

Lance blinked a couple of times, nodding at Coran and then heading through the doors. Coran followed right on his heels.

               Despite Coran’s warning, Lance was still shocked by what he found on the other side of the door. Keith lay completely exposed, on his back with his thighs spread apart at an angle he never imagined possible—it certainly wasn’t comfortable. Keith had his hands gripped on the sheets tightly, his hair strewn about his face messily. The boy was covered in sweat—from his head to his toes, his entire body glistened with moisture and dampened the pale white sheets beneath him. His skin looked a deathly white, as if his blood itself had suddenly stopped circulating. What struck Lance the most was the slight pink hue of Keith’s pronounced belly; other than his face, it was the only part of his body that appeared to have any color to it at all. He looked near death.

               Keith looked up at the sound of the door opening, finally noticing Lance and Coran standing there.

“Lance,” Keith breathed, his expression completely lightening.

Keith let out a deep breath, a breath he had seemed to be holding, upon noticing Lance. The pain in Keith’s eyes somehow lessoned, in a way that cannot be explained, and his body visibly relaxed, as if heaving a gracious sigh of relief.

               Lance strode to his bedside, seating himself next to Keith’s head and prying Keith’s bony hand off of the sheet he was holding and taking it in his own. They were clammy and cold, but he didn’t mind. Keith blinked at him for a few surprised seconds, his confusion finally interrupted by Lance’s soothing voice.

“I’m here, Keith, I’m here.”

Keith clutched onto Lance’s hand tightly, finding them a suitable (if not better) replacement for the sheets he had been clasping so firmly. He was here.

The remaining paladins still out in space were having a rough time. It seemed that no matter how many of the small cruisers they destroyed, there were more and more of them circling in. It was becoming increasingly obvious that they were in over their heads.

               Allura’s voice was their saving grace.

“All right get back here, quickly. We are just about ready to make the jump, and we will need the particle barrier turned on with you all inside it in order to take a hit from that laser. It’s going to be close, but I think we can make it.”

               The lions deftly flew back to the castle, the particle shield closing up behind them. They were in the knack of time. As soon as the lions had all safely docked, the entire castle lurched forward upon impact.

The main Galra ship was too close for comfort, but luckily the wormhole opened up and swallowed the castle like a hungry fish, closing just in time to prevent any unwanted travelers from going with them.

The crew let out a resounding sigh. Somehow, some way, by some sort of gift from God, they’d escaped from the Galra ship. While no one wanted to run away, they all agreed that given the circumstances it was the only thing left to do. In any other circumstances the crew’s tension would have eased, but suddenly a blood curdling scream chilled their very bones.

               “Keith…” Hunk stated.

They had forgotten about Keith. This was no time to be relaxing; Keith was still in danger. Exchanging worried glances, Hunk, Pidge, Shiro, and Allura all wordlessly made their way to the infirmary, situating themselves outside. There was nothing they could do but wait.

               If Lance thought Keith looked worse for wear when he first came in, he was shocked now. In only an hour or so Keith’s condition had deteriorated, though his grip on Lance’s hand hadn’t lessened at all. It was easy to see that already Keith was exhausted. Coran kept instructing him to breathe deeply, but it didn’t seem to be helping.

 The contractions came every few minutes or so. They had increased in frequency, and each time one hit Keith would look to Lance as he clenched his hand tightly, their eyes meeting. Lance couldn’t do much else for him, just trying to send him confidence when their eyes met, rubbing his thumb over Keith’s hand reassuringly.

Coran sat at the end of the bed, watching to make sure things were going along smoothly and ready to take action at any time. Lance was thankful he wasn’t in Coran’s shoes. Sure, he’d gotten to know Keith relatively _intimately_ over the last few months, but he wasn’t sure he could be all up in the business side of things at the moment. It was all he could do to just sit by Keith’s side, let alone deliver a _baby._

He could tell that Keith was nervous. Rightfully so, he would be too if he was pushing out some alien baby. He shivered at the thought. Lance thought human child birth was foreign, he couldn’t imagine alien child birth. But he was curious to see how the baby would look. Would it look like a human, like a miniature Keith? (Lance smiled at that idea, it would be adorable to have a little Keith running around) Or would it be alien-like? It was hard for him to imagine a little Galran child running around the castle, especially when the war was being waged on them. He wasn’t sure that would be the best environment for raising a child.

Which brought other things to mind: What _were_ they going to do with this baby? Coran had tried to find a suitable alien ally that was willing to raise the baby if Keith decided he couldn’t (which was likely, considering to how he had referred to the child inside of him as “a little fucker” all the time) Unfortunately the idea of raising a Galran baby proved to be too much for all of them, who were stricken with fear at the mere sight of the purple aliens.

That meant that they were going to have to raise the baby themselves. It wasn’t the most ideal option, but it was the only one they had. Keith squeezed Lance’s hand, calling his attention back to the matter at hand. Keith stared into Lance’s eyes through his contraction. Lance could _feel_ the fear in his glance, setting his jaw as he tried to maintain his composure. He had to be brave for the both of them right now, Keith couldn’t do it on his own.

It was the strongest contraction so far, evident by the vice-like grip on Lance’s hand. He knew after this was all over his hand would be bruised to shit, but that was nothing compared to what Keith was going to be feeling. Coran poked his head out from under the blanket covering Keith’s lower half, catching Lance’s attention briefly.

“Not long,” Coran mouthed to him, trying not to worry the poor pregnant boy.

Lance stiffened a bit, hoping Keith wouldn’t notice too much. He didn’t notice, as it so happens, because immediately following their exchange Keith let out another scream, scrunching his eyes shut. Lance’s heart raced wildly; _this was it._

“Okay, Keith. You need to start pushing now,” Coran instructed.

Keith shook his head no, defiant. Keith didn’t want this thing to come out. If he could just hold it in…

“Keith,” Lance’s voice caught his attention, “You have to push.”

               Tears began to flow down Keith’s face as he shook his head once more. _Dammit, Keith._ Lance knew he wasn’t exactly in a rational frame of mind at the moment, but surely he knew that the baby wouldn’t just come out on its own, right? Keith let out another scream as he was overtaken with another contraction, his mouth hung open widely, drool beginning to fall from his mouth.

_Shit._ Lance couldn’t stand to see Keith in so much pain. Things needed to start moving along, Keith’s obstinance was only prolonging things at this point. He had to get through to him somehow.

               Lance pried his hand away from Keith, causing the boy to panic some and desperately reach for him. Keith was full on sobbing at this point, his face turning a splotchy red and tears rolling onto his cheeks freely. The loss of Lance’s hand led him into a blind panic, and now he was thrashing around and pleading Lance to return with his eyes.

_Sorry, Keith. I don’t know how else to get through to you._

Lance leaned over Keith, taking his face into his hands and forcing him to look him in the eye.

“Keith,” the boy searched Lance’s eyes wildly, “You’re going to push.”

Keith shook his head adamantly this time, refusing, but Lance didn’t let him go.

“Yes, you’re going to push, or I’m not going to hold your hand; I’ll leave.”

Keith let out a choked sob.

“So you’re going to push for me, okay?”

               Lance released Keith’s face, sitting next to the bed once more. But he held out his hand in offering, Keith glancing at his outstretched fingers, considering. There was a brief pause, and the entire universe felt as if it had stopped. But Keith reached for his outstretched fingers, looking to Lance meekly.

_Good. He’s going to push._

With the next contraction Keith started to help things along, trying his best to push the baby out.

“Good, Keith, good. Keep going, we’re getting there,” Coran reassured, though Keith wasn’t paying any attention to him at all. No, Keith’s eyes were locked onto Lance.

               With every contraction Keith death-squeezed Lance’s hand, and the two maintained constant eye contact. Lance didn’t mind the pain in his hand, or the awkwardness of being stared at. Keith was pushing, the baby was coming, and that was all that mattered.

“The shoulders are out,” Coran yelled from under the blanket, “the hard part is over. Just one more big push and we’re done.”

Lance ran his other hand down Keith’s cheek, wiping away the dried tears and the new ones rushing forth.

“Almost there,” Lance whispered to him, the boy strangely captivated by Lance’s presence above him. They were almost done. Thank God.

               Keith let out a final scream, but the baby was out. A strange feeling of emptiness overcame him, both physically and mentally.

“It’s a boy,” Coran announced, clamping the umbilical cord and beginning to clean it up.

Both Keith and Lance were afraid to look away from each other, afraid of what they would find when they looked up. Lance broke eye contact first, scanning the room before catching a glimpse of the tell-tale purple skin typical of a Galra. Lance froze, half expecting that this would be the case, but still disappointed that there wouldn’t be a tiny Keith running around. What he was afraid of was how Keith would react to the sight of it, but he soon found out.

               Keith’s breath caught in his throat as he eyed the purple baby. It looked nothing like him, he thought, it looked just like a miniature Galran. No. It was spitting image of _him,_ that horrible beast that did this too him a while ago. He was enraged.

               Keith released Lance’s hand, a red-hot fury rising in his eyes.

“Get that… that _thing_ away from me!” Keith screamed, thrashing about in his bed.

Both Lance and Coran were caught by surprise. They knew that Keith probably wouldn’t be all too accepting of the baby at first, but neither of them expected the rage that he showed now.

“Keith, calm down. The baby needs you so he can nurse—“ Coran started.

“NO!” Keith screamed.

Lance eyed Keith carefully. He was serious. His antics continued to escalate, and Coran decided it would be best to carry the baby outside for a while. In the meantime Keith would need a bit of a stay in the healing pod anyway, and Coran hoped that after things had settled down, Keith would change his mind.

They could only hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No folks, this isn't the end. I have plans. *evil laughter*


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry all- been going through some mental health issues and don't know when I will be updating this story within the next few weeks, but I'll try my best to keep it up. Honestly I do have a new story in mind I'm aching to start writing so I'm in a hurry to finish this one and I'm afraid the quality has suffered because of that, and so I am sorry. But no worries because I will finish this story eventually! I still have a few good chapters I've been meaning to write:) Until then ~~

Once everything had been cleaned up and Keith had been moved into the healing pod kicking and screaming, everything seemed to have calmed down. The baby Galra slept soundly wrapped in his blanket, in a makeshift cradle set up next to Keith’s pod. It seemed that the baby could sense his momma’s close proximity, and so he didn’t put up too much of a fuss.

               Pidge placed a curious hand over the glass of Keith’s healing pod, noting the dark circles beneath his eyes and puffiness of his skin. It’s as if, somehow, he had aged immensely in just this short year. While that could be true of all of them, they were all nearly run ragged defending the universe after all. The rest of the paladins quietly hovered over the baby, curious, but none enough so to venture any closer. Coran seemed occupied pressing some buttons on the healing pod, and the princess had returned to the helm of their ship to find somewhere safe to dock for a while.

“How long do you think he’ll need to be in here?” Pidge motioned to Coran, still muddling with something beside her.

“Shouldn’t be too long. Or _can’t_ I should say. The baby will need to nurse eventually. We have some baby formula on board, but it is in no way designed for a Galran baby and there’s not much left of it now. But there should be enough left to let Keith heal a little bit and calm down, at the very least.”

Pidge and the others gave a silent nod. None of them could ever imagine Keith _holding_ the baby, let alone _nurse_ it. The look in Keith’s eye’s when he’d caught glimpse of the baby had been. . . frightening. After a few hours people began to mingle out, back to doing their own things. Coran stayed behind, insistent on watching the baby while Keith was recovering. No one was too keen to jump on that one, so everyone agreed and fled the room in their own time. Everyone except Lance.

               “Lance, you can go. I know it’s been a stressful day for all of us, but especially you, during delivery. I don’t think he could have done it without you,” Coran spoke between yawns.

Lance eyed Coran carefully. He looked tired, behind his happy-all-knowing façade, as if he hadn’t slept in days. Thinking about it, he probably hadn’t; between the Galra attack, Keith’s delivery, and now watching the baby, it had been well over 24 hours. Lance felt bad for him.

“Hey Coran, I’ll watch the baby. You go get some rest, it looks like you need it.”

Coran puffed up at that, “You calling me ugly?”

They both laughed at that. Eventually Coran gave up and gave Lance some basic baby instructions before leaving the room.

“If you need anything, just call for me!” Coran said, and then the door closed.

               Finally alone, Lance inched up to the baby’s cradle. He looked nothing like Keith, but his big fluffy ears sure were cute. The baby stirred, wrinkling its nose a bit, though not waking. Lance sat down next to the cradle so he could be eye level with the baby, but still have a good view of Keith from the corner of his eye.

“Heya, baby,” Lance cooed in what must have been his sad attempt at a baby voice, “I’m Lance. But I guess you don’t have a name just yet.”

Lance chuckled.

“Your momma is one of the most stubborn, angry, and reclusive person I know, but I know he also has a gentler side in him. I hope you can bring it out of him, little baby.”

               He sighed, facing the healing pod quietly.

“I hope you get to see it.”

Lance reached out his hand, the baby clutching his finger with his tiny ones.

“I only hope.”

Lance had baby duty for a few hours while Coran slept but nothing much happened. Keith still stood inanimate in the healing pod, a neutral look on his face as opposed to his usual scowl. The baby had been fed from a bottle with what little formula the ship had on board but they would need a lot more very soon. And three days passed like that, nothing eventful, the ship completely silent as if everyone on it was holding their breath.

It was time. Keith needed to wake up now; the baby formula was practically gone, and the ship’s censors were picking up yet another Galra ship approaching. They couldn’t babysit forever (even though Lance wouldn’t really mind).

               The whole team gathered in front of Keith’s healing pod with fingers crossed. They hoped his reaction to the baby would be a positive one this time. With a rush of air the seal to the healing pod released, and a tired and scrawny Keith stumbled forward, though he was able to catch himself before falling. It took him a while to get his bearings, having forgotten exactly why it was he was in a healing pod in the first place. The entire team stood around him, staring, as if waiting for him to do something. Then he spotted it.

               The cradle sat right next to the healing pod, and he could hear the soft cooing coming from inside. His eyes darted towards the noise, on edge, and then back at the others. But he made no move forward. Made no sound. Keith stood like a deer staring into headlights, unable to move.

“We should give them some time,” Shiro suggested.

A few people nodded and Hunk, Shiro and Pidge shuffled out the door.

“ _Cowards,”_ Lance mumbled under his breath.

He knew they were afraid of what Keith’s reaction would be, but so was he. That doesn’t give you a reason to just _leave._

Coran broke Keith’s trance.

“You should at least look at him, Keith. He needs his mother.”

A flash of anger rose within him, apparent by the glint in his eyes. Nevertheless Keith stammered forward to the cradle, finally taking a nice long look at the baby.

Lance and Coran Stood in silence, watching Keith process. After a few quiet minutes Keith spoke.

“This is mine.”

Lance cleared his throat, “Yep.”

“It came out of me, _me,_ and now I’m supposedly his mother?”

The tension in the air was almost palpable. No one answered the second question, figuring Keith just needed to figure this out on his own.

“I’M NO GOD DAMN MOTHER! THIS… THING IS NOT MINE! Not mine…” Keith dropped to his knees, breaking into a sob.

Lance motioned for Coran to leave, who did so promptly.

“Keith, buddy, this baby needs you—“

Lance was interrupted.

“This thing isn’t a baby. It’s a _monster._ Lance, it’s one of _them._ It’s _him,_ Lance. He looks just like _him_ and I can’t do it. I can’t take care of it it’s a _monster it…”_ Keith’s voice faded out.

Lance took a seat next to Keith, throwing an arm around the sobbing boy’s shoulder.

“It’s not a monster, Keith, It’s half you. Look.”

Keith turned his head towards the baby, studying it closer.

“He has your eyes, the same amber-brown, and I can tell he’s gonna have a full head of hair, just look at all that purple fluff up there,” Lance smiled, “and he’s strong, just like you, I can tell.”

Keith huffed. Now that Lance had said it, the baby did have some features that looked like him. But the rest of him looked just like _HIM._ And that was the problem. Keith flung himself into Lance’s arms, holding him tightly and wetting his shoulder sleeve with his tears. Lance patted him on the back soothingly, knowing that this was a lot to take in.

               “Lance.”

“Yeah?”

“I was awake,” Keith paused, “It looks just like him.”

Lance clutched Keith tighter.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

Keith offered no answer, just clung to Lance tighter.

“That’s why I can’t do it. I can’t raise this baby.”

Lance pulled away, searching Keith’s eyes. They seemed hollow almost, as if they were void of all emotion, having been drained slowly over the years.

“Keith, you’re the only one that can help this baby. We can’t feed it, it needs a momma.”

Keith pulled away completely, turning his back to Lance before speaking.

“Why don’t we… give it back?” Keith said meekly.

Lance inhaled sharply, startled.

“To who, the Galra?”

Lance was just about to laugh when Keith answered, “Yeah.”


	11. Chapter 11

“Are you _crazy?”_

Lance could hardly believe what he was hearing.

“Give him to the _Galra? The enemy?_ Who knows what they’d do with him. You are his _mother_ he _needs_ you, Keith!”

Keith scrunched his face into an angry expression, standing suddenly and facing Lance.

“Just look at him!” Keith yelled, “He’s one of them! I don’t know how to raise a child, let alone a _GALRAN CHILD!_ He’d be better off with people who knew what they were doing!”

Keith sighed dejectedly, sliding down the wall to the floor and burying his face in his hands.

“And that person isn’t me.”

               Lance eyed Keith’s slumped figure curiously. Sure, he got what he was saying. It would be hard to raise the child of, Lance gulped, your rapist. But he gave birth to this baby, right? That makes him a mother, whether he liked it or not.

“Keith,” Lance said soothingly, settling down next to him once more.

“You may not know what you are doing, but you are this baby’s only chance at survival. He _needs_ you Keith.”

Lance could hear Keith’s sniffles next to him, but he knew these things needed to be said. Lance stood abruptly, drawing Keith’s attention out from under his knees that had been tucked to his chest. Lance scooped the baby from the cradle before making his way back to Keith.

               “Hold him.”

Keith looked up.

“Hold him, Keith. Hold your baby.”

Lance didn’t give him much of a choice, as soon the baby was being set in his lap and Keith had to wrap his arms around him to prevent him from falling to the floor. Keith stared down at the creature in his arms. His skin may be purple, but it had the same feel as his own. He looked surprisingly similar to a human baby, though Keith had very little experience with those either, save for the big fuzzy ears that lay flat back against his head.

               _Oh no. He hates me. I knew this would happen he hates—_ Keith’s thoughts were interrupted as the baby nuzzled into his chest, pressing his mouth to where he knew to instinctually.

“Oh,” Keith said, startled. “I think… I think he wants to nurse.”

Sure enough the bundle in his arms had his mouth against Keith’s chest, sucking the material of his shirt.

“Then let him,” Lance stated flatly.

Keith looked to Lance for direction, but was met with an unamused stare.

“I’m not sure I… do that? Allura didn’t say anything about producing milk.”

Lance chuckled.

“Dude, look at your chest.”

Keith was afraid to look, but sure enough there were two small swells on his chest, not nearly as large as a woman’s breasts but still clearly there. In fact, a small wet spot had stained his t-shirt from where he was leaking out.

               “Lance,” Keith’s meek voice caught his attention.

“I’m scared.”

_Were those tears in his eyes? Nope, no way. Lance McClain has never cried in front of anybody before, nope those were definitely not tears._

Lance attempted to hide his emotional state, sighing and taking the baby from Keith.

“Shirt off.”

Keith looked at him in confusion.

“What?”

“Shirt,” Lance motioned towards him with his chin, “get it off.”

               Keith hesitated a second, but soon his shirt was on the floor and he sat bare chested. Lance handed the baby back to Keith, settling in next to him.

Keith was thankful the baby seemed to know what to do, for as soon as he got close enough he closed in on his nipple and began to suck.

“Woah.” Keith said breathlessly.

Lance looked at Keith, who was staring down at the nursing baby.

“Feel weird?” Lance asked, trying to keep the mood positive.

Keith shifted to get a bit more comfortable.

“Yeah. I can’t really explain it. Like, it doesn’t hurt or anything, but it’s not comfortable either.”

Lance stared at Keith and the baby in a daze, “Yeah?”

               Something about watching Keith nurse his baby saddened him, and Lance couldn’t understand the meaning of it. Keith was smiling down at the little baby, finally accepting his role as a mother. Maybe that was the problem. _What does that make me?_   Lance couldn’t be the father. Seeing the person he loved nurse a baby that wasn’t his…. It stung. But seeing this side of Keith, a gentle, maternal side, drove him crazy. He loved this man with all his heart. And on some weird bestial level, he wanted Keith to be nursing _their_ baby, not some Galran child. He knew that it was a selfish thing to think, but he felt it nonetheless.

“Yeah.”

A moment of silence settled over the room.

“Hey Lance?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m glad it’s you.”

Lance was just about to ask him what he meant by that, but Keith had already slumped against Lance’s side, asleep, baby still nursing from him.

It had been nearly an hour, but Lance hadn’t the heart to wake the boy leaning against him. He supposed that Keith was probably exhausted, what with giving birth and all, but it had been a long time and his long legs were starting to cramp.

He couldn’t help but stare at him. Keith was handsome, always had been, but now he was handsome in a different way; a beautiful, yet vulnerable way. The purple baby had fallen asleep nestled against Keith’s chest, and every now and again his little hands would open and close as if deep in a dream. Lance ran his hand over Keith’s hair, tucking it securely behind his ear. In sleep Keith looked like an entirely different person; he looked to be at peace, calm, angelic.

Far from the hot-headed man Lance knew. He could sit for hours and watch him sleep, but deciding that to be creepy, Lance pried the sleeping baby from Keith’s arms and shook Keith awake. Keith stirred, moving to lean on the wall behind him instead of Lance. With the baby returned to the cradle, Lance scooped the tired mother into his arms and carried him to his bed.

Lance tucked him in securely, then situated the cradle next to the bed. Both Keith and the baby remained dead to the world, as if exhausted from the day’s events. Lance set up a chair in Keith’s room so he could keep watch over the two of them. While Keith had been in the healing pod, Lance and the baby had bonded quite a bit. It was easy to tell that the baby recognized him, for whenever Lance walked in the room the baby would reach his arms into the air, begging to be picked up. And of course   
Lance, being the sucker that he is, had to pick him up then because who could resist?

But nothing compared to the sight of Keith with his baby. Lance had seen it; the change that washed over the small baby when in his mother’s arms. It was like an instant calm, trust maybe. Try as he might Lance just couldn’t compete with that. A baby knew its mother, that’s for sure.

A sudden tiredness overtook him, he felt… emotionally drained. He was glad that he had gotten Keith to accept the baby, albeit a little disappointed that the baby liked Keith better than him. He had been the one to feed and change his diaper for the last few days. But he didn’t question it, it made sense. Keith and the baby were connected for nine months, one and the same, so it’s only natural that the baby seek his mother. Just as Lance was about to close his eyes, to succumb to the quiet throes of sleep, he was awakened by a loud blaring noise. Sure enough, the emergency alarm had to go off, because who needs sleep, right?

“WAHH!!!” the baby wailed along with the alarm, but it was so loud you could hardly hear it.

Keith bolted upright, and Lance was already out the door. Keith began to get up to leave, but glanced back at the cradle. He couldn’t just leave him there. Was anybody expecting him to show up anyway? The idea of being left out of the loop yet again angered him, and in a rush Keith grabbed the wailing baby and took him along to the helm of the ship.

No one was expecting to see Keith with the baby. The alarms had sense been turned off, everyone having been accounted for by now. Lance was about to ask what happened, but he could see that everyone was staring at something behind him. Lance turned, finding Keith and the baby standing there.

               “Keith? What are you doing here!??” Lance questioned.

It seemed that everyone else had the same question. Keith grunted, shifting the baby from one hip to another.

“I’m tired of being left out. I had a baby, I didn’t die. I want to know what’s going on.”

No one seemed to be listening. Shiro was deep in conversation with Allura, and Hunk was busy making funny faces at the baby, who looked amused.

“Well that makes two of us,” Pidge chimed in.

Allura finally turned to the rest of them, but her facial expression didn’t look promising.

“Paladins,” she started, “We’re being boarded.”


	12. Chapter 12

If looks could kill the Galra standing before them would have been dead and buried eight feet under. The intruder was accompanied by two sentries, who at the moment had their weapons pointed straight at them. Not much of a good first impression.

Lance, Shiro, Pidge, and Hunk stood their ground, bayards drawn and ready to move into action at any second. But Keith stood, pale as a ghost, and stared into the eyes of the unwanted visitor. It was then that he knew. This was the man. This was the man that had raped him almost a year ago, impregnated him with his child, and now, the nerve of him, he stood in the castle, staring him down.

The large Galra put his hands up for show, his sentries lowering their weapons.

“Paladins,” the grizzly voice said, “What a pleasure to see you all again.”

The Galra turned to Keith, who was pale as a ghost, but he clutched his baby tightly to his chest.

“And I see the little one has been born.”

               The whole team turned to look at Keith, momentarily overtaken by shock. It was Shiro who lost it first.

“YOU! You were the one who did this!?? How _dare_ you lay your hands on him. How _dare—“_

Allura held him back, motioning for him to quit speaking.

“I see,” Allura said calmly, “this is your child?”

The Galra smiled, his sickeningly white incisors flashing before them.

“Indeed. He is a good size, looks healthy,” the Galra took a step towards Keith, who stepped back in defense.

“What do you want from us?” It was Coran this time, stepping in front of Keith as well.

“I’ve come to take my child. He is destined to become prince, and it is obvious that he will need to be raised accordingly.”

Keith let out a little squeak, clutching his child tightly and hiding behind Coran.

               “That’s not going to happen,” Allura stated matter-of-factly, addressing the intruder directly.

Time stood still, it seemed, and no one would say for sure how or when shots began firing, but they did. Soon the entire room was being bombarded with firing lasers, and Keith had taken cover behind an upturned table.

Keith could hear the commotion from where he was sitting, huddled with his baby. He was struggling to breathe, and the purple baby sensed his mother’s discomfort, responding with blood curdling screams. The roar of the lasers drowned most of it out, but Keith wouldn’t have known the difference. His heart was flooded with panic at seeing the Galra again, and it sped so fast he began to feel light headed. Keith clenched his teeth.

_He’s back._

He inhaled sharply.

_He’s going to take him away._

Lasers continued to fire.

_He’s gonna take me away._

Thoughts raced through his head. Thoughts of being taken away by his rapist, forced to bear child again and again. All of his latent fears that had been hidden away were resurfacing, and oh God he couldn’t breathe.

               A little hand reached for Keith’s mouth, startling him, but helping him return to reality. No matter what he had to protect his baby. Even if it meant to die trying. But he couldn’t will his legs to move. It was all he could do to clutch the purple bundle tightly to his chest, eyes closed tight. The others were fighting now. They would save him. He had to trust in the team. Had to trust that they would protect him.

Suddenly a body came crashing through the overturned table, landing inches from Keith’s feet. _Lance?_ In the smoke it was hard to tell, but it looked like Lance had just been thrown across the room. There was only one man he knew strong enough to do that, besides Shiro, and he knew that this battle was far from over.

Lance lay unmoving, but the rise and fall of his chest indicated he was still alive. Somehow Keith found his voice.

“Lance is down! Lance is down!” Keith screamed, tears running down his face freely.

He crawled over to the body slumped on the floor, placing a hand on his neck to feel for a pulse. It was still there, and strong, so odds are he had just been knocked out. But it didn’t stop Keith from assuming the worst.

Keith’s sense of hearing was beginning to return, but all he could hear were the firing of lasers and the yelling of his team mates. Allura was barking out orders, but it seemed that everyone was too preoccupied doing their own thing to pay them any mind.

               With child clutched to his chest, there wasn’t much Keith could do. Instead he listened intently to figure out was going on from behind the table, praying no one else would get hurt. But soon all was quiet. He listened for his team members, but could hear nothing. Had they all been killed? Footsteps. He could hear footsteps approaching him. His breath hitched in his throat. _He’s coming for me. He’s coming for me. He’s gonna get me—_

He was startled when Shiro emerged.

“Keith. Keith. You okay?” Shiro’s voice was tense, he obviously was fearing the worst.

“And the baby? Is the baby okay?”

It took Keith a few moments to realize what was going on, but when he finally realized it was Shiro standing before him, he cried.

“F-fine. B-baby okay. Lance—“ Keith turned to the unconscious figure lying next to him.

“Lance!” Keith screamed his name repeatedly, desperate for him to wake up.

He couldn’t lose Lance, not now. Not after all of the things he has helped him through. All the things that bastard had forced him to do… He needed him. Keith was bawling, nothing could calm him. He needed Lance.

               The rest of the team followed after Shiro, and soon Keith was surrounded by voices asking him things, but he couldn’t do anything. Couldn’t will himself to say anything. All he cared about right now was Lance.

“Lance.”

“We know--,” Pidge’s voice, “we’re getting him. It’s okay.”

“Lance—“ Keith’s consciousness was fading, he was gonna pass out.

“Lance—“

When Keith woke up he was back in his room. Panicked, he bolted upright to look in the cradle, and sure enough the baby was there, asleep. Keith let out a relieved sigh. He didn’t know what happened after he passed out, but if he was in his room with the baby, surely everything was okay.

“Lance.”

Keith had forgotten about Lance. Rushing to his feet Keith leapt from the bed and headed straight for the recovery pods. The team was gathered around one of the pods, conversing. They didn’t seem to be in any state of alarm, so Lance must be okay.

“Phew.”

They turned to look at him then, having heard his heavy sigh.

“Keith,” Allura greeted, “Glad you’re up. You fainted back there.”

Keith gulped. What had happened? Did they manage to kill that… Galra?

“What- What happened back there?” Keith asked earnestly.

After a few exchanged glances, Shiro spoke up.

“They—they came for your baby, Keith. They wanted him to become some sort of Prince…. But not to worry, they were thwarted. But Lance—“ Shiro turned towards the healing pod, “Lance jumped in front of the table to take a shot to protect you. He should be okay, but he was knocked out cold. Might be a while.”

Tears came to his eyes, and for a moment he was oblivious to the fact that there were other people in the room.

“Can… Can I be alone?”

               Everyone nodded empathetically, and the team left without another word.

Keith pulled up a chair next to the healing pod, staring at Lance through the glass. He knew he couldn’t stay long, he needed to be back soon to take care of the baby. It had been a few hours since he’d nursed. But for now he was content sitting in front of the healing pod, looking at Lance’s face.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered.

Funny how it took getting raped, pregnant, and saved by your arch rival to realize that, well… Lance wasn’t his arch rival. Lance was there for him through it all: the pregnancy, delivery, and he had saved him and the baby when he needed it most. Keith had never felt feelings quite like this before, but he was pretty sure it equated to something like love.

               With a last glance at the closed eyes behind the healing pod, Keith left the room to go nurse the baby. Lance would be out soon, they had assured him.


	13. Chapter 13

It wasn’t soon enough. Keith was struggling to keep up with the purple Galran child, and normally Lance was there to help him out. But Lance remained in the healing pod. Maybe the others had lied—his injury was more than just a simple laser burn. He needed Lance to wake up. He needed to tell him everything. He needed to tell him he loved him. Not in some weird maternal way, but in an I-want-to-spend-the-rest-of-my-life-with-you way.

               Lance had helped him through it all: the pain at first, the delivery, the acceptance of the baby; and now Keith couldn’t imagine a life without him. And while the thought sped the beating of his heart in his chest, deep down he was afraid. What if he didn’t feel the same way? Keith never had anyone to rely on before, and he couldn’t stand to lose the one that he finally had now.

Just as he thought this, Lance’s eyes fluttered open.

“Lance?”

The seal of the healing pod opened, and Lance stepped out, albeit wobbly.

“Keith, Buddy, are you okay?”

Keith cringed at the use of the word “buddy”, but he chuckled beside himself.

“I should be asking you that. You took a hit for me back there. So uh—thanks.”

               Lance blinked at him stupidly for a moment, recollecting what had happened.

“SO-- how long was I out? And did you ever name that baby? Cause at this point Lance Junior sounds pretty good to me.”

Keith laughed, a full belly-aching laugh that he’d forgotten he could do: typical Lance.

“I am so not naming him that,” Keith laughed, setting a hand on Lance’s shoulder casually.

               Lance must have made the first move, because in one swift motion Keith was pulled chest to chest with Lance, their lips intertwined in a passionate clash of wills. Lance’s hands framed Keith’s face, keeping him there as his tongue snaked along his lower lip. Keith eagerly obliged, opening his mouth and allowing their tongues to gently intertwine. Finally Lance pulled away, and bright red blush spread across both their faces.

“I—Uh…” an awkward silence settled across the room.

Keith seemed just as unsure of what to say, running his hand through his hair.

“Keith?”

Keith’s gaze drifted upwards to meet Lance’s eyes.

“I’ve uh… I’ve wanted to say this for a while now, but—“

“NO!”

Keith’s yell echoed in the hollow room, startling Lance and shutting him up momentarily.

“I know what you’re going to say,” Keith said sadly, “but… I want to say something first.”

Lance’s expression searched Keith’s to no amend; he couldn’t predict what the boy would say. From the looks of things, he began to fear the worst. _Oh no. I’ve overstepped my bounds, he doesn’t like me._ But then an evil grin crept across Keith’s face.

“Lance,” he started, clasping his shirt between his tightly knit fingers,“…I love you.”

               Lance stood in shock for several moments, and unable to form any coherent words, he pulled Keith in for another mind-shattering kiss. Lips met lips, tongues tickled and teased, the two completely lost in the pleasure of each other. When they finally separated, Lance locked eyes with Keith.

“I love you too, you jerk.”

               News of their relationship spread quickly, and once the initial teasing had subsided, everyone was supportive. After all, the baby already looked to Lance as some sort of father figure, so it made sense really.

“Keith,” Lance whispered into his ear, disrupting his twilight-like sleep on the communal sofa.

Keith rubbed his eyes wearily, exhausted after caring for the baby for so long.

“Thomas is asleep.”

               Keith rolled his eyes at Lance, leaning back to kiss him on the lips.

“And…?”

Keith let out a little squeal as he was swept up into Lance’s arms and carried away to Keith’s now-shared bedroom. Lance roughly tossed him onto the bed, crawling atop him with a sinister look on his face.

“Lance,” Keith started, but he was interrupted by Lance’s lips on his own.

Keith pushed him away as gently as he could, he had to say it.

“Lance… I can’t.”

               Lance’s expression turned serious, and he immediately moved from off of him. Keith eyed Lance wearily, hoping he hadn’t offended him. They had been dating for a while now, and up until this point, neither of them had had any sexual contact. And while that was all well and good for now, Lance decided he needed to try his luck. Keith jumped as Lance sat up next to him suddenly, pulling him in close. A quiet understanding passed between the two. Finally Lance spoke up.

“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to. But I want you to know,” Lance squeezed him tightly, “I’m here to listen.”

               He couldn’t stop the tears from flowing. All of the memories, the pain, the recollection of _his_ scaly fingers upon his body, they’d never gone away. Every day he is reminded of it: it’s in Thomas’ eyes, his ears. And as much as he loved him, as much as he loved Lance, he couldn’t confront the wall that he had built for himself.

               Lance’s arm ran up and down Keith’s soothingly, not urging any words, just comforting. But suddenly the wall broke, and Keith fell into Lance’s tight embrace. His tears flowed freely, staining the material of Lance’s shirt, but the arms wrapped around him remained there; offering support.

“He tied me up,” Keith sobbed into Lance’s chest, “It was painful… It hurt so bad… Screaming. I was screaming, … but no one—“ Keith didn’t continue, and Lance didn’t push him for any more. He knew Keith had been traumatized, and he respected that he needed time to heal. And he vowed that he would be there for him every step of the way.

               Lance held Keith for a while, letting him vent. It hurt his heart to think that anyone could touch his precious Keith, and seeing his partner in such a state pained him greatly. Keith let out a loud sniffle, finally looking up into Lance’s eyes.

“I know he’s not you. But I’m still scared.”

Lance pulled him in for a kiss, “There is no pressure, and it’s your right to be scared. But I want you to know that I will not hurt you… If you ever feel like you need to stop you tell me and I’ll stop right away. I love you, Keith, and as much as I want to touch you, I value you first and foremost. It’s whenever you’re ready, okay?”

Keith said nothing, just hugged Lance’s long torso tightly. Then he whispered, quietly; barely loud enough to hear.

               “If it’s you, I’m ready.”

This time Lance was taken by surprise.

“Keith, there’s no rush---“

Keith lay back on the bed strewing his arms lazily above his head.

“I’m ready.”

Lance didn’t need to be told twice. Since the delivery of Thomas, Keith’s physique had returned to normal for the most part, though there was a loss in muscle tone around his abdomen, and the swelling of his chest was still subsiding now that Thomas had stopped nursing. But Lance didn’t mind, it made him all the squishier for cuddling; an activity the two partook in regularly now, usually with baby Thomas propped up on one of their laps. 

               Keith’s messy hair splayed every which direction, and Lance had to take a moment to take in Keith’s beauty.

“How did I get so lucky?” Lance asked, once again straddling Keith’s hips and pinning his arms to the bed.

Lance leaned forward until his face was hovering above Keith’s, lips a breadths width away. Keith turned his head abashedly, unable to look Lance in the eye. Sensing his nervousness, Lance intertwined their fingers with one hand, his other brushing the hair away from his eyes.

The raven-haired male was bright red, his breaths coming faster and faster.

               “Look at me, Keith,” Lance whispered, “I want to see your face.”

Keith turned his head towards the man pinning him down, finally making eye contact. His heart was beating quickly, though this time around it was for an entirely different reason. Lance drew him in with a kiss, equally as excited as so indicated by the hardness pressed against Keith’s abdomen.

“I love you, Keith,” Lance cooed, snaking his free hand up Keith’s shirt. Keith’s breath hitched in his throat as Lance fondled his chest, still strangely sensitive due to the pregnancy. In some clumsy way or another Lance managed to get both his and Keith’s shirt off, and threw them across the room haphazardly. Keith was too breathless to take any notice, until he felt a hand fumbling with his fly. It took a moment for Lance to get it undone, and he wasted no time getting Keith’s clothes off.

               “Hey, that’s not fair. I’m the only one naked,” Keith pouted between heated kisses.

Lance chuckled into his mouth.

“I’ll fix that.”

Lance stripped himself of the remainder of his clothes, and now the two lay bare together for the first time. Lance was muscular, Keith noted, much like he used to be. Suddenly Keith grew self-conscious. He was embarrassed by his post-pregnancy body; the muscularity of his chest and abs was gone, replaced with a bit of belly fat that he was working to get rid of. The swelling of his nipples were still clearly apparent, and even though he didn’t want to admit it, Lance was quite a bit _larger_ than he was.  

               Keith pried his hands away from Lance’s, using them to cover his face once more.

“What’s the matter?” Lance asked earnestly, prying his hands away.

Keith closed his eyes. _It isn’t fair_. Lance was gorgeous, how could he be attracted to his out of shape body? Lance got no response, so he suddenly sat upright atop Keith’s hips. This caught Keith’s attention, which made him look up in confusion.

               “What’s wrong?” Lance repeated, searching Keith’s expression for any sort of fear.

Keith blushed a bright red, and finally a muffled voice filled the empty air.

“I’m embarrassed, okay? Look what this pregnancy has done to me. And then you’re so—“

Lance laughed, leaning back down over him.

“You’re beautiful,” Lance whispered into his ear, sending chills down his spine, “always have been, and always will be.”

Though Keith was still filled with doubt, he didn’t allow it to bother him. He’d get back in shape soon; _then_ Lance would have something to look at.  But then Keith’s thoughts stilled when Lance closed his mouth around his nipple, and he found himself involuntarily gaping his mouth open wide at how sensitive he was there. Certainly that wasn’t normal? Lance licked and sucked at the nub, before turning his attention to the other one.             

               Keith could do nothing but wrap his arms around Lance tight, fingers digging into his bare back.

“Ah!” Keith moaned as Lance bit his nipple playfully.

Lance liked the sound of that; the sound of Keith’s voice was deep but passionate, just as he had imagined it would be. He wanted to make him cry out more.

“Sensitive here?” Lance asked, playfully nipping at him once more.

“Ung!”

Keith’s moans encouraged Lance all the more as he nipped and sucked at Keith’s ears and neck; and soon he had figured out just where Keith liked it and he began to focus his attentions there.

“L-Lance,” Keith preened, arching his back and rutting against Lance’s leg.

He was painfully hard now, he needed more. He wanted to be touched, ravished, and devoured by Lance. He craved it; he needed it. Lance seemed to get the message, reaching to the bedside table drawer and pulling out a bottle. Keith looked at Lance questioningly.

“Where in the fuck did you get space lube?”

Lance laughed, flipping open the bottle and pouring some into his hand, “I have my sources.”

Keith didn’t have much time to question it, as soon Lance’s hand was wrapped around his shaft and moving deftly up and down. He was good; probably because he was a guy too, he knew what felt good and what didn’t. Keith had never been touched this intimately before, and its not as if he had a good experience to compare it to. He had jacked himself off some before, of course, but Lance’s hands were different. The softness of his strokes, the teasing of his agile fingers, they made him crazy. Keith found himself helping things along with little thrusts of his hips. All at once Lance stopped, grabbing the bottle and generously spreading it between his fingers.

               “You okay?” Lance asked for safe measures, but Keith could only nod his head.

Lance’s finger traced the ring of tight muscle gently, as if asking for permission to continue. Keith was growing impatient now, desperate for the return of Lance’s touch. Keith rutted against him again, urging him to keep going.

               Without further hesitation Lance stuck his finger inside, massaging his inner walls with his long fingers. The feeling of his fingers wasn’t bad, just different. Soon Lance had another finger inside of him, spreading him open as gently as he could.

“Ah! Uh,” Keith moaned loudly, covering his mouth to muffle the noise.

“There, huh?”

Keith cried out again as Lance massaged that spot over and over, his voice lessened as he bit his arm.

“Let me hear you,” Lance cooed, tugging Keith’s hands away from his face and interlocking their fingers.

“Ah!” Keith moaned loudly this time, leaning into the feel of Lance’s fingers.

“That’s better.”

Lance’s fingers drove him wild; and soon he was reduced to a moaning, mewling mess. Lance seemed to like it that way, continuing to both pleasure him and prepare him for what was to come. Soon Keith was relatively loose, having relaxed into the feel of Lance’s fingers.

               All at once the fingers were removed, and something bigger, warmer, was threatening entry. Lance stared into Keith’s eyes, asking permission, to which he was granted. Lining himself up Lance eased himself inside, Keith’s nails digging into his back.

“Okay?”

Keith nodded, though his grip on Lance’s back suggested that he was at least somewhat uncomfortable. Lance stroked Keith’s thighs soothingly, encouraging him to open up for him more and relax. After a minute Keith got the idea, allowing his legs to be spread further and finally getting used to the feeling of Lance inside of him.

               It was a bit uncomfortable, but nothing compared to his first time. Lance was large, but nowhere near the size of the Galra that took him before. Keith shook his head, pushing the thought from his mind. He was one with Lance, finally, and that was all that mattered.

“I’m going to move,” Lance said as he pulled out a bit, then slid back in.

It was obvious he was holding himself back, afraid of being too rough with him. Keith invited him in deeper, wrapping his legs around Lance’s torso.

“AHH FUCK,” Keith moaned as Lance plowed into him deeper, his shaft running over a sensitive spot inside of him he didn’t know he had.

“Fuck,” Lance was mumbling now, completely enthralled in the writhing body beneath him.

At this rate, it wouldn’t take long. But from the looks of things, Keith was getting close too. The raven-haired male had his eyes screwed shut, toes curled as he clung to Lance for dear life.

“Ah! Uh! Ah!” Keith groaned with every thrust.

It felt good. Sure, it hurt some, especially at first. But _fuck_ Lance was hitting him just right, and he couldn’t help the erotic noises escaping his mouth.

               “I’m gonna come inside you.”

Lance’s words pushed Keith over the edge, crying out as he came hard all over both of their bare stomachs. Lance followed suit, mumbling another _Fuck_ under his breath and spilling into Keith in one long, deep stroke. The two collapsed, both heaving for breath.

Lance must have pulled out at some point, because the next thing Keith remembered was the feeling of something wet leaking from a place it ought not to. Lance lay next to him, finally beginning to come to. Keith needed to clean himself up, and wobbly sat up in bed. Keith winced, more sore than he thought he would be.

“I’ll clean you up, babe,” Lance stated, helping Keith to his feet.

They made their way to the bathtub, filling it with warm water before both of them climbing in. Keith sat between Lance’s legs, his back pressed up against Lance’s chest. Keith shifted a little, finding something hard pressed against his back.

“Lance…” Keith started, turning his head to look at the man behind him.

But Keith was silenced with a kiss, Lance’s hands lathering up his body.

It seemed obvious that this was going to be more than a simple bath. And frankly, Keith didn’t mind that at all.

 

 

 A few happy weeks passed uneventfully, and Keith was finally beginning to get back into the swing of things. The signs of his pregnancy had subsided, and Thomas was starting to become a handful. The entire team sat at the breakfast table, though all was eerily silent.

“Okay, what’s with this awkward silence?” Lance asked, shoveling food into his face.

Pidge and Hunk exchanged an amused look.

Pidge cleared her throat, kicking Hunk under the table.

“Okay, OW,” Hunk scolded.

               Hunk let out a big sigh; of course he was going to have to be the one to say it.

“It seems like two particular paladins were having a _very_ good time last night. And loudly,” he added.

Keith and Lance blushed bright pink, looking at each other, embarrassed. They’d been having sex regularly, and sometimes they forgot that the walls of the castle tended to be thin.

“Well I trust at the very least you have been using protection,” Allura asserted.

Shiro choked on his food, surprised at Allura’s straight-forwardness.

“Uh… Protection?” Lance scratched his head confusedly.

“Keith has been infected with a womb seed, so he is able to become pregnant, Lance,” Allura clicked her tongue, “It would be wise to use protection.”

 

 

Keith was going to kill Lance. Of course they had no idea about space condoms. Of course he was beginning to have pain in his abdomen. And of course the pregnancy test came back positive.

“Not AGAIN!” Keith yelled through the bathroom door.

Lance had no regard for privacy, barging his way in.

“I’m gonna be a daddy?”

Keith threw the pregnancy test at Lance, who blocked the blow with the door.

“I’m going to murder you,” Keith said with a scowl, but he couldn’t stay mad at Lance.

Lance chuckled, walking the rest of the way in.

“This time, I’ll be there for you the whole way.”

               Keith pouted, but Lance ignored him and kissed him on the lips.

“You suck, you know,” Keith teased.

“Yeah, I know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is the end, folks. I know its abrupt, but it just felt right. Sorry for the long wait, and I hope this came out okay. I've read over it a million times and didn't know what to change, so I decided to just upload it as is. I've got some plans for a new story in the future, so stay tuned if you want! Thanks for sticking with me!


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